New Awakenings
by prettyinlily
Summary: Modern Day AU Finnick just wanted to make a quick stop in a bookstore to pick up a gift, however in there he will meet someone who might teach him the importance of feminist literature and love.
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own THG and a BIG thank you to for-prim for being my lovely beta and helping me get my tenses together**

Finnick sighed as he pushed the door open into the bookstore, and he almost immediately regretted it. The air was musty around him as a bell rang to notify a worker. Apparently this was the only place where he could get a first edition copy of the book that Mags kept talking about. He wanted to surprise her for her 90th birthday with it, she had always joked that she was afraid to start a book because she was worried she wouldn't get to finish it before she passes. Finnick appreciated her sense of humor; he just wished it were about something other then her life, which he doesn't even want to think about. He knew what her favorite book was and he was determined to give it to her. Plus he could always say that the bright side is she'd already read it a hundred times, so she definitely knew the ending.

However, as he looked around at the messy shelves and stacks of books he thought it might be harder to find than he had originally anticipated. He wandered the aisles wondering how anyone could possibly find anything on the crammed shelves. Surprisingly, the aisle went on for a long time. The store itself was very narrow, but he hadn't accounted for how deep it would go. He looked around for an employee. He was hoping to make this trip a quick one. He only had an hour for lunch and that particular bookstore was all the way across town. The store was eerily quiet and there were no other customers; Finnick's frustration grew as the aisles bled together and no one was in sight.

"Hello" he shouted into the silence.

Suddenly he heard a loud crash. Finnick immediately headed towards the sound- what he saw surprised him. A young woman on a step ladder was clutching the shelves so hard her knuckles were white. Her eyes looked to be tightly shut and there was a pile of books at her feet that Finnick deduced to be the cause of the crash. Finnick was confused at the sight- surely this wasn't the first time a customer had tried to find assistance. Besides, hadn't she heard the chime when he opened the door?

"I'm sorry, excuse me, I didn't mean to frighten you." Finnick said, concerned for her.

The young woman seemed to relax at the statement, releasing her death grip on the shelves. Her eyes remained closed- she took a deep breath before opening them.. She slowly and carefully went down the stepladder as though she was terrified of falling, even though it was only a few short feet off the ground. She exhaled when her feet touched the floor. She turned towards Finnick who had been silently taking in the woman before him. He was struck by how big her eyes were- they were a beautiful green color and they were now solely focused on him. She began to speak in a quiet, but clear voice.

"I'm so sorry about that. I guess I just didn't hear the bell. Sometimes that happens when I'm shelving. I just get so focused on the task that everything else kind of.. " she trailed off, her eyes dropping to the floor. She shook her head and then looked up once more at Finnick. She cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry, how can I help you?" she asked politely

"I called the other day and spoke to a man named Cinna about a first edition of _The Awakening_ by Kate Chopin. I was wonder-" a smile took over her face as she cut him off.

"Oh, yes! Cinna went ahead and put that up at the front!" she said eagerly

"Great." He smiled at her excitement and stepped to the side and gestured for her to lead the way. She moved by him and talked over her shoulder.

"It's kind of surprising that a man called in for _The Awakening_." Finnick raised his eyebrows at the statement.

"Really? Why is that?" He questioned, taking in her long, long brown hair that trails down her back. The woman moved behind the counter and began to dig through a box of books.

"Well," she began, "It's just that it's _The Awakening_ and most men don't have the best reaction to it." She straightened up like a shot and faced him, flustered, "Not that you wouldn't or couldn't enjoy it, frankly I think it's great when men read feminist works, it's just not the norm for this book. But, it's wonderful and I certainly recommend it…" She trailed off as a blush creeps up her face. He hated to admit that it made her look rather cute.

"Honestly, I have no idea what this book is about. I'm getting it as a present for my nanny," Finnick said.

"Your nanny?" The young woman asks in disbelief.

"Yes, my nanny." Finnick said, squaring his shoulders and holding his head high. He loved Mags. She had taken care of him most of his life and he had no shame, but rather pride in her being his nanny. Surprisingly the woman just smiled a small smile and went back to digging through the box.

"That's really sweet of you. Has she read it?" She asked

"Yes, it's actually her favorite book, so I though it would be nice to get a first edition for her."

"That's a terrific-I got it!" The woman exclaimed. Finnick chuckled at her excitement. Her cheeks colored at the sound and she placed the old book on the counter. Her hands ghosted over the cover, tracing the letters of the title. He noticed how entranced she seemed. He knew Mags loved this book, but he didn't realize how powerful it apparently was. The effect it held over this young woman intrigued him more than he wanted to admit. Once again she seemed to snap out her trance and grabbed the sheet of paper inside.

"It says here that this was pulled for a Mr. Finnick Odair," she said and looked up at him. "I'm presuming that's you?"

He chuckled and said, "Yes, indeed." She smiled at the sound of his laughter.

"Well, allow me to ring you up."

"Wait," he said. She paused and looked at him with such a worried expression he wanted to laugh.

"Is something wrong?" She asked nervously.

"No, I just... I was just wondering if you could tell me about the book?" She smiled and for a moment he could swear an almost devious smirk graced her features.

"How about you just read it?" she suggested.

"Fair enough, fair enough," Finnick decided to turn a little bit of his charm on, not too much though, he didn't want to scare the poor girl, "Why don't you read me a little bit of it?" To his surprise she didn't seem shocked or scandalized, but rather she just smiled again and picked the book up and began to flip through the pages.

"Chapter six…Aha!" and then she began to read and Finnick could swear he actually felt his heart stop beating for a moment.

"The voice of the sea is seductive; never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander for a spell in abysses of solitude; to lose itself in mazes of inward completion. The voice of the sea speaks to the soul. The touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body in its soft, close embrace."

She stopped and looked up at him. He couldn't speak. He didn't want to speak. He didn't want to leave this moment. Her eyes were on his and he never wanted that to change. He gulped and then-

The damn chime went off as a customer entered the store, ruining Finnick's perfect moment. The woman looked down and immediately began to ring him up without a word. Finnick realized he had to speak if he ever wanted to see her again.

"Umm," he inwardly chided himself for his amazing communication skills, "that was lovely. Truly. I can already see why it's her favorite." The woman looked up at him as he handed her his debit card. Their hands didn't touch, but he wanted them to. It was then or never, and Finnick had certainly never been one to let an opportunity pass, particularly when it came to women.

"If I read it, will you talk with me about it?" She froze as she began the process of smoothing out the receipt for him to sign.

"Excuse me?" she asked, as though she couldn't possibly have heard him correctly.

"If I read the book, will you talk with me about it?" He picked up the pen on the counter and signed his signature as he waited for her response. It was taking too long- he was used to women jumping at the chance to spend time with him

"Okay," her soft voice broke into the air.

"Okay," He smiled at her. He then waited as he expected her to rattle off her cell phone number or write it down to give to him, but she did no such thing. She just looked at him. He wanted to sigh- to tear his hair out. Why wasn't this going as planned? He finally just gave in.

"How can I reach you?" He asked, flustered

She looked confused for a moment and then she said, "I'm here aren't I?" Finnick looked at this wonderfully strange creature before his final words.

"You certainly are…" he trailed off hoping she would at least pick up the hint to give him her name.

"Annie. Annie Cresta." She smiled.

And that was that.


	2. Chapter 2

**I do not own THG and many thanks to for-prim for being my lovely beta :)**

"Honey, I'm Home!"

This news rang throughout the apartment as Finnick heard the door open and then close. He sat up from where he was lying on the couch, his head buried in the book he had promised Annie Cresta that he would read.

"Oh thank God, Peeta, I was starving!" Peeta shook his head and laughed. He began opening up the cabinets in their kitchen and pulling out ingredients. "You know, you can just make yourself a sandwich." Finnick pouted, "But I don't want a sandwich. I want one of your homemade, delicious, original recipe meals."

Peeta laughed and began to boil water on the stove. "I don't really have time to make a fancy meal for you. How does fettuccini alfredo sound?"

Finnick clapped, "It sounds perfect. You're the best, roomie!" Finnick stood up and stretched before he made his way into the kitchen. "Why are you home so late, anyway? Long day at the bakery?"

"Yeah man, farmer's market is this weekend. We completely sold out last month, so we're making extras of all our best sellers."

Finnick smirked. "Ahh yes, the farmer's market. I presume your stalking victim will be there as well?"

Peeta turned a brilliant shade of red and shoved Finnick's shoulder. "Dude, I don't even know what you're…" Finnick laughed, "Oh shut up, Finn. "

Peeta turned back to the stove and Finnick wandered back over to the couch and picked up his book. He had to pick up his own new copy from Barnes and Noble, as he didn't want to manhandle Mags's present before he gave it to her. In the story, Edna had just gone back to New Orleans.

He was about to dive back in when Peeta's voice interrupted his thoughts. "Oh yeah, you're gonna give me crap when you're reading a book just to try and impress some girl."

"Well at least I talked to this girl instead of just staring from across a tent. Look I'm not trying to give you a hard time about the girl at the butcher shop, I'm just saying, talk to her. Ask her how her day is, how her sales are, maybe offer her a sample of your goods." Finnick couldn't help but waggle his eyebrows as he said it.

Peeta just scoffed. "It's not that easy."

"Yes it is! It is exactly that easy. I mean frankly, all you have to do is buy something from her and she's at least forced to interact with you! Hell, maybe you can make a trade?" Peeta appeared to contemplate it. "And yes, I am reading this book to impress a girl. I want Mags to think very highly of me."

Peeta laughed. "Whatever dude. Hey, do you wanna help out this weekend?"

"If by help out you mean I can just sit behind the stand and bring in customers with my good looks then, yes, I absolutely can help out," Finnick said

"I wouldn't expect anything less. Or more, frankly." Peeta replies as he shook his head at his roommate's antics. Finnick actually did work hard at his job at a PR company that worked a lot with advertising for the bakery, but he wondered when his friend would get serious.

Finnick rarely let people see beyond his persona, in fact Peeta could really only think of himself and Mags as the two exceptions. Most of all, Finnick never let the girls he was dating see his true self. Peeta would never describe his friend as a womanizer, but Finnick didn't try to get to know people and he seemed to flat out refuse to let people really know him.

"I'll let you get back to your book. Wouldn't want to disappoint Mags now would you?" Peeta asked.

Finnick shot Peeta a grin and sank onto the couch and Peeta turned his attention back to the kitchen. Peeta couldn't help but let his mind wanders to the mysterious girl who worked for the butcher stand at the local market. Maybe that weekend he actually would say something to her.

Saturday morning dawned bright and early. Peeta and the other worker he asked to join him, Venia were busy trying to set their stand up. Peeta was doing most of the hard labor while Venia worked on the chalkboard displaying their special flavors of the day. Finnick sat in a folding chair book in hand. Peeta thought he looked ridiculous in his loafers, rolled up jeans, button down, and ray bans, but whenever Peeta mocked his wardrobe Finnick always said that he doesn't subscribe to GQ for nothing.

"You know, you could actually help." Peeta said, looking down at Finnick with a smile on his face.

"I am helping." Finnick replied without even looking up from his book.

"Yeah, sure just sitting…" Peeta trailed off and _that_ was incentive for Finnick to look up. Peeta's eyes were trained across the way at a stand where a girl with her hair in a braid stood talking to a guy next to her who looked like her brother. Peeta stared and Finnick chuckled and as soon as the guy walked away Finnick stood up and brushed off imaginary dust from his pants.

"Allow me." Finnick said

Finnick ignored Peeta's protests as he walks toward the butcher stand. He stared at a few of the cuts of meat as he waited for the girl to walk over.

"Can I help you?" She asked.

Finnick looked up and responded, "As a matter of fact you can. Are you familiar with Mellark bakery?"

The girl just gave him a confused look before asking, "You mean the bakery that runs the stand over there?"

Finnick smiled. "Yes, the one and only. Well you see, _Peeta _is the owner and don't tell him I said this, but I know he's had his eye on you these past few markets." He stopped when he saw the furious look on her face. She was _angry_. What?

"Look, I get that PETA has trouble with what we do, but Sae is just trying to run a business. It has nothing to do with them. So you should just tell PETA to mind their own goddamn business and look elsewhere for their cause of the moment."

Finnick was shocked. And then overcome with a bad case of the giggles. He could barely choke out, "No no no. PEETA MELLARK is the owner." Finnick looked back and pointed at Peeta, who immediately ducked his head and tried to act as though he wasn't just watching their entire interaction. "Not the people for the ethical treatment of animals. Jesus." Finnick could no longer contain his stifled giggles and he breaks out into a full laugh. He missed the blush that crept up the girl's face as she looked over at Peeta.

"Oh I haven't laughed like that since I was a little girl. Anyway I guess what I'm saying is you should stop by the stand later. Get a cupcake. Or a cheese bun, we would greatly appreciate your business."

And with that Finnick flashed her a smile and turned back to walk to his chair where his book awaited him. He wondered… would Edna actually have an affair with Alcee? He needed to know.

The day seemed to pass by fairly quickly as he sat in his chair. Peeta did good business, selling a lot of bread and quite a few pastries. Finnick nodded and smiled at people as they passed by, when he deigned to glance up from his book. He was almost finished when he heard a soft voice to his right.

"Hi could I please get a loaf of wheat and a banana nut if you have any left?"

Finnick recognized that voice. It was the voice that just days ago told him her name when he left with the promise to return. He looked up- it was her. Her hair was just as long as he remembered but a few pieces in the front were tied back. He knew how stupid it may have sounded, but he'd actually forgotten how pretty she was.

She smiled at Peeta as he bagged her items and Finnick felt a rush of jealousy. He then mentally slapped himself. Peeta couldn't help but be the nicest guy in the world. She counted her money, and Finnick watched as she mouthed the numbers to herself.

When she handed the money to Peeta, their hands touched, and Finnick couldn't help but remember how badly he'd wanted to touch her hand at the bookstore.

He was staring. He was aware.

Or at least he was made aware when Annie turned and her eyes landed on him. He started to smile as her eyes dropped to the book in his hand. She looked back up at him with an expression he couldn't quite understand. She almost looked frightened.

He began to raise his hand to wave but the motion was cut short when she immediately turned around and walked away. He stood up quickly and began to follow her. She didn't look back and halfway across the tent, Finnick stopped. He was frozen.

A girl had just _ran away_ from him. What was happening? He thought they had a cute flirty moment at the bookstore. He didn't imagine it, did he? Did he? No, he didn't. She'd smiled. Told him her name. Told him to come back and talk about _The Awakening_ with her.

Finnick slowly made his way back to the bakery's booth and couldn't help but smile at what he saw, despite his confusion over Annie. The girl from the butcher's stand was talking to Peeta, though it looked like maybe the most awkward conversation ever. She was twirling her braid and half the time speaking to the floor, and Peeta could hardly contain his blush- but still they were speaking.

Why wouldn't Annie speak to him?

He was determined to finish the book. It's an easy task as only twenty pages lay before him. He took it to heart though. Annie told him to come and talk about the book with her, so damnit he was going to. He had already made notecards with possible topics of discussion: the symbolism of birds, Adele Ratignolle v. Mademoiselle Reisz, Robert's intentions, etc.

Then he reached the end of the novel. No. _That can't be it. That can't be the end. Why would the book end that way?_ He had to talk to Annie about it.

The next week, on the same day and time that he was last in the musty old bookstore, he waited outside for a beat. He took a deep breath and pushed open the door. He heard the chime and before him, back turned, was the long brown hair of the woman he wanted to see.

"Hello, Annie."


	3. Chapter 3

**I don't own THG and a big thanks to for-prim for her mad beta skills (I'm so sorry I just said "mad skills")**

"Hello Annie"

She had a confused look across her face, as though she didn't understand how anyone could possibly know her name. Her eyes landed on him and he saw her freeze, for just a second, but she quickly recovered and then puts on a businesslike demeanor, which fit her so poorly on her that Finnick wanted to laugh.

"Hello, can I help you?" Finnick really didn't want to play this game. He knew that she knew who he was. She had recognized him at the farmer's market, he just didn't know _why_ on earth she had run away from him.

"I finished the book." Her lips curled into a smile and then fell as she tried to regain her previous expression.

"Excuse me?" She asked.

"I finished the book." She looked like she was going to say something but he interrupted, he needed to tell her. "_The Awakening_. I finished it. And, I just- how could it end like that?" Her face immediately softened. He took that opportunity to move closer to her. "I'm not going to lie, I was not expecting _that_." She looked him square in the eye and he knew that she was done pretending.

"Did it upset you?" Finnick just nodded. Of course it had upset him. Edna had drowned herself. Swam out into the ocean until she was too exhausted to continue and let the waves swallow her whole.

"Good."

Finnick was slightly alarmed at the word that had just exited her mouth. "Good? How is it good that I'm upset?"

"It means the book did its job. It did a number on me the first time I read it. It was even worse the third time."

Finnick chuckled. "How many times have you read it?"

"More than I can count." She admitted, shaking her head and moving to another row of books and reshelving some items there. He noticed her mouthing the titles to herself. He was so completely entranced by the way her mouth moved that he almost forgot what he came to ask.

"Why?" She snapped her eyes back to him, a look of bewilderment clouding her lovely features. He could see understanding crossing her face and she looked directly at him with an almost pitying expression on her face before she answered.

"She couldn't reconcile it."

She took the stack of books she'd gathered and moved behind the counter up front. He saw the thought processes going on in her head move across her face. She was an open book. He couldn't help but chuckle when he tried to imagine Annie playing poker. She lifted her eyes to him at the sound.

"She didn't know how to be an artist and a mother and wife." Finnick moves to the counter and placed his hands on it- close to where hers lay, but not too close.

"I'm just so mad at Edna. I don't think I've ever felt this way towards a fictional character." Finnick paused. "Actually I really hate Joffrey in Game of Thrones, but this is different. I was rooting for her, but she didn't care. She did it anyway."

Annie smilesdat him, and he knew that he had to go for it. "Please get coffee with me. I really want to hear your take on it, maybe just so I'll know I'm not the only one who felt cheated by Edna." He could see her hesitation. That damn open book of a face. "Please." He could see her face contort and he knew that she was about to say no.

"I really do just want to talk about the book. Do you work on Fridays?" She remained silent. "Well, on Fridays I get out early so I will be at the Laguna coffee house on Lovers at 2:00. I would really like it if you would meet me there."

She swallowed and looked at him, indecision now present among her features. It amazed him how many emotions she seemed to be able to feel in the span of a few minutes. He decided to press one last time.

"I'll probably be there for a couple hours, get some work done or read but remember if you don't show up. I know where you work." She surprises him by laughing. Now it was his turn to wear a confused look. She turned her crinkled eyes to him.

"Sorry, but that sounded really creepy and stalker-like." He laughed gently with her, glad that she hadn't completely rebuffed him.

"Well, pretend that it sounds very suave and debonair instead." He looks down to where their hands were placed on the counter. Inches from each other, but to Finnick the inches felt like miles.

"Well, I'll get out of your hair, which looks very pretty today if you don't mind me saying." He knew his eyes weren't fooling him when he saw a blush climb up her face. "But remember, 2:00 Friday at Laguna Coffee, its along the Pavilion on Lovers Lane."

"I know where it is," she said

Finnick was halfway out the door when he heard her quiet melodic voice answer him, giving him some glimmer of hope that he wouldn't be sitting at a coffee shop alone on Friday.

The next few days, Finnick tried his hardest to go about business as usual, but it proved difficult for him when all he could think about was Friday. He had tried to calm himself, as well as prepare, by rereading the book, but it did the opposite. It filled him with more questions. Questions that he hoped Annie could answer, or at least help quell some of the emotions burning inside of him.

By the time Friday morning rolled around, Finnick was a nervous wreck. What if she didn't show? She had run away from him less than a week earlier. She wasn't going to show. He knew it. But he really did just want to talk about the book with her. No funny business.

Well, maybe funny business later after he'd taken her to dinner a few times and knew more about her other than her name and workplace. Maybe the comment about her hair was too much. But it did look nice that day, long dark, dark brown falling down her back in slight waves. He wanted to run his fingers through it. He wanted to hold her hand. Their fingers intertwined together, lying on top of a table as they sat across from each other.

He had to shake the image out of his head as he got dressed for work. It was Friday, so casual it was, or at least casual for him. Finnick was never seen in sweats outside of his apartment, he found it appalling that some people couldn't even be bothered to put in effort in what they wore. As he sat on his bed to put on his shoes he smiled to himself thinking about seeing Annie last Saturday. He distinctly remembered her jeans, fitted white t-shirt and a colorful scarf loosely wrapped around her neck. It was perfect. Not like the oversized t-shirts and leggings most girls seemed to wear that just screamed "It's Saturday Morning and I didn't feel like trying" Finnick knew that appearance was everything, so he made every day count.

Work dragged on. _Dragged_. For a moment, Finnick was sure the clock had stopped, but he was wrong. The minute hand slid into place, so Finnick tried to imagine what Annie would wear later that day. _If_ she showed up of course. Finnick slapped himself. She would show up. She had to. She _had_ to.

At 2:00 Finnick found himself pulling open the door to the coffee shop and throwing a dazzling smile at the employee. The shop was small and rarely full, which was why he liked it so much. He walked to the counter and put in his order for a coffee and settled in at a table where he could see out the shop window to keep a lookout for Annie. He sipped his coffee and flipped through the newspaper he brought with him, but his eyes kept going to the door, hoping that any minute Annie would walk through it.

Minutes passed. And then an hour. Finnick never stopped checking the door, however. Then at a quarter to four, Finnick recognized the figure standing outside warily looking at the coffee shop's sign.

If he were guessing, he would say she had just come from work as she was wearing a simple dress with a cardigan and flats. Much like what she had been wearing the past two times he was in the bookstore. He thought she looked absolutely lovely. He was searching her just as enthusiastically as she seemed to be searching the sign. As though it would tell her what to do. Her eyes then met his through the glass and Finnick smiled as she blushed, having been caught. He waved at her to come in. She did and he let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding when she finally stepped through the doorway.

"Please, let me buy you a cup a coffee." Finnick stood and walked to the counter and she joined him, perusing the menu on the wall. She had the front pieces of her hair clipped back again, and Finnick thought that he liked this look the best, because he could see her whole face.

"Could I please have a small peppermint tea." Annie asked. The barista nodded at her.

"Thank you." She reached into her purse, but Finnick immediately waved his debit card.

"No, I've got it. I did ask you here after all." She looked up at him. He realized with her standing right next to him that she was about 5'7 or 5'8. Of course, he stood at 6'1 so he was still a good few inches taller than her, but she wasn't petite. Finnick liked that, he thought to himself.

"Thank you, then." Annie said. The barista handed her the steaming cup and shot Finnick a smile before he led her to the table where he'd been sitting.

"Do you need any sugar?" he asked her.

"No, thank you." He smiled at her politeness. They sat down and a silence fell around them. She looked at him expectantly.

"I'm still so mad at Edna. " She laughed at this admission and nodded at him.

"I know what you mean. Sometimes… sometimes I think I get it. I understand. She made her decision. She was going to be an artist and was going to be with Robert finally, but then that fell through and she must have felt _so lost_. And then seeing Adele, who was everything that she was supposed to be, this ideal mother and wife, I think she realized that she could never go back to that life." She paused for a moment, and sadness filled her face before she took the lid off of her tea and gently blew on it.

"So instead of being mad at Edna, I should be mad at Robert for leaving and Adele for being perfect?" She laughed at him.

"Don't get a hold of the wrong end of the knife now. Did they unknowingly play a part in her suicide, yes, but obviously they can't be held responsible."

They talked and talked and soon Annie's cup was empty and people had filtered in and out of the shop. Finnick knew their time together was coming to a close, but he needed to know something.

"May I ask you a question? There's something that's been bothering me."

"About the book?" Her face clouded with worry.

"No." He turned his eyes directly onto hers. "About the farmer's market. Why did you run away from me?" Her eyes dropped to table and then they were back on his and he saw panic streaking through them

"I'm sorry! I just just- I saw you and then I saw that you were reading the book and it made me think that you remembered me." Now it was his turn to be confused.

"Well, of course I remembered you."

"I know and I didn't want that. I want to be invisible. I don't want people to notice me. That day in the bookstore you did just that. You kept talking to me, but then afterwards I told myself that you wouldn't come back because I mean, look at you. Why would you want to talk to me" She blushed again.

"But you did and still do apparently." She shook her head and looked away from him. Finnick's confusion wasn't lessened by this admission. The curiosity was only stoked further. How could someone as lovely as she was not want people to pay attention to her?

"I'm not sure I understand," Finnick said. She glared at this.

"You don't have to understand it, you just have to accept it. I don't like it when people pay me extra attention. I mean, I once went to a Chipotle twice in one week and the same guy was working the counter. The second time I was there he goes, 'chicken right?' and I knew I couldn't go back. Or at least not for a long time. I don't want to be a 'regular' anywhere, I just want to go about my business without anyone taking notice of me."

"Do you have any regulars at the bookstore?" He couldn't help but ask.

"Besides you?" she smiled at him and he returned it, glad that she didn't seem angry with him.

"Not really. It's just an old bookstore, not a bookstore-slash-coffee shop. People come in, usually buy something and then leave. Maybe they come back, but I never remember them."

"But you did remember me." Finnick smirked at her as her blush deepened. She nodded.

"It would be hard to forget you." She said this so quietly he had to strain to hear it.

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but I don't think I'm going to be able to forget you either." He smiled at her as he said it. He saw her hand lying palm down on the table. He made up his mind. He was going to go for it. He laid his hand over hers gently. He hand was soft and warm. He checked her face for a reaction. She was staring at their hands. She slowly slid her hand out from under his and he felt his heart drop. She refused to meet his eyes.

"I should probably go. Thank you for the tea and the conversation." She stood up and he stood with her.

"Please, let me walk you out." Finnick insisted

"Thank you," she replied, her voice laced with stoicism

They walked in an awkward silence to her car and when they reached it Annie turned to him with a determination he hadn't seen in her yet.

"Are you going to come back to the bookstore?" she asked, bravely meeting his eyes. Finnick swallowed, afraid of what was going to come next.

"If you want me to." He held her gaze as he saw the thoughts running across her face.

"I do. I think." Annie admitted, moreso to herself, it seemed, than him. Finnick lightly chuckled, she was so enchanting.

"Well, I hope you keep thinking that. I'll see you Tuesday then. He walked away and tried his hardest to only glance back once. He felt extremely satisfied though when he saw she was looking back at him.


	4. Chapter 4

**I don't own THG and a big thanks to my lovely beta for-prim (she's wonderful)**

Saturday morning, Finnick was preparing to celebrate Mags' 90th birthday. He wrapped his gift, dressed in the shirt she'd given him for his last birthday, grabbed the strawberry cake with vanilla buttercream icing that Peeta had made for her, and walked out the door. He couldn't wait. He was taking Mags to brunch at her favorite spot, and then they were seeing a matinee performance of a play. Mags had said she'd seen a performance of it ten years earlier and that it was one of her favorites. When Finnick saw that a local professional theatre was putting it on during her birthday, he thought it to be fate.

Mags was his favorite person in the world. She had cared for him and his older brother and sister as children while his parents worked long hours, and he had always felt a special connection to her. He knew he was her favorite child, even if she couldn't ever say it aloud. Although by the time they were all grown up, she could, and did with some frequency. Mags now lived in an assisted living home for the elderly, but it wasn't any old raisin ranch, it was the best that money could buy. Finnick's parents, as an act of appreciation for the woman who showed their children so much love and affection when they weren't around, set her up at the place. She also had a pretty hefty savings account after years of working. She had no biological children of her own, but that didn't matter because she had Finnick.

He threw his car into park and strolled into the building throwing a wink at the receptionist. She grinned back.

"Good to see you Finnick," she said in a flirty tone.

"Always a pleasure Cashmere," he tossed back before he began to walk the corridors and finally ended up at Mags's front door. He knocked and grinned as he heard her calling to hold on. When she opened the door, Finnick bent down and hugged her as best he could with his arms full.

"Mama Mags! Happy birthday!" he exclaimed while holding on to her, "How does it feel to be ninety?"

"The same as eighty-nine, my dear boy. How are you?" She returned with a laugh.

"Terrific, just terrific," Finnick said. Mags moved aside and motioned for him to enter. He sat the cake down on the table and lightly touched the lid before turning to Mags.

"This here is from Peeta. He wishes you a happy birthday as well." Finnick said with a smile on his face. Mags approached the cake and lifted the lid. She sighed when she saw the cake inside.

"Oh, it's beautiful. That boy is just too darling," Mags said before she turned to Finnick with a glint in her eye "Now are you sure you two aren't… you know?" Finnick couldn't help but throw his head back in laughter.

"Oh no. We're not gay, Mags. If we were I would have locked that down a long time ago." The two shared a laugh before Finnick continued, "And besides, Peeta actually has a hot date tonight with a girl that he's been crushing on recently."

"I hope she's good enough for him," Mags said, and Finnick nodded in agreement.

"I've met her. She seems pretty different from the girls he usually goes out with, which is probably a good thing," Finnick replied as he thought back to when he met the girl at the market.

"Probably so… so what's on the agenda for today?" Mags asked.

"Well, first we are having brunch." Finnick started.

"Yum," Mags cut in.

"And then we are going to the Undermain to see _The Goat, Or Who is Sylvia_." Finnick finished as he produced the tickets from his pocket, pleased with himself when he saw Mags's excitement.

"This is wonderful Finnick, butyou didn't have to do all this. You know I would have been fine with anything," Mags scolded, albeit with a smile gracing her features. Finnick decided this was the perfect time to give Mags her present. He took the box out from under his arm and handed it to her.

"Then this is definitely too much," he said as she slowly unwrapped the box. She placed it on the table and gingerly lifted the lid. When she did her hand flew to her mouth and she looked up at Finnick, her eyes glassy with tears. She took the hand from her mouth and cupped Finnick's cheek.

"You darling boy."

"It's a first edition," he said through his grin. Her eyes became wide. She hugged him as fiercely as her body allowed. Finnick happily reciprocated, not only grateful that his gift had gone over well, but thrilled that he could bring a smile to his nanny's face. She released him and he grabbed her hand.

"Come on, we don't want to miss our reservation." He said as he grabbed her cane to give to her and opened the door. Though Mags walked with a cane and moved slowly she was in truly remarkable health for someone her age.

Shortly after, they arrived at the restaurant and placed their orders and Finnick finally asked what the play was about. He hadn't actually bothered to find out when he purchased tickets; he just knew Mags loved it so he bought their tickets straightaway. Mags chuckled.

"What?" Finnick asked.

"Well, it explores love, and what that means and challenges the social norms for love." Mags explained.

"Okay, well that sounds interesting. How does it do that?" Finnick asked.

"The main character is in love with a goat." Mags replied. Finnick almost choked on his French toast.

"Seriously?"

"Yes, and it's beautiful. I mean, it's funny as well, but it's such a wonderful play. It makes you think. It's by Edward Albee you know." Mags continued.

"The _Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf_ guy?" Finnick asked.

"One and the same." Mags said with a chuckle and began to work on her eggs benedict.

* * *

Finnick was having a wonderful day. Spending time with Mags was something he wished he could do more often. And, though he hated to admit it, spending time with Mags was serving as a good distraction from thinking about Annie. She had been taking up so much room in his thoughts lately. It was shocking to him- this had never happened before. Sure, he liked pretty girls, but he had never been so hung up on one before. He rationalized it as surprise that she was one of the few (if only) girls who didn't immediately succumb to his charm. He couldn't stop thinking about her flushed cheeks, her long hair, her soft voice, and what she had said about wanting to be forgettable. The thought made him laugh because she was on a constant replay in his mind. Forgettable was the last thing she was, at least to him. Mags snapped him out of this train of thought.

"Darling, what's going on inside that head of yours? You look like you did when you were learning long division."

"Oh, it's nothing Mama, just trying to remember if I need to valet the car at the theatre." Finnick said swiftly. She just scoffed at him. He wasn't quite ready to divulge all of his feelings to Mags, especially as he didn't quite know what to make of them himself.

The rest of the meal passed quickly, as Finnick and Mags spent the entire time laughing and recalling things of the past. She fussed at him when he insisted on payin, but allowed it. They then made their way to the theatre. It was a somewhat odd theatre in that they had to take an elevator to the basement. The theatre was almost cavernous; the stage was on the same level as the audience and it was completely cement. The usher showed them their seats and they settled in. They chatted quietly and flipped through their programs and then a petite woman with short, brown hair walked to centerstage and gave the "no cell phones in the theatre" speech. But she did so with so much attitude that Finnick truly believed she would throw someone out herself if he or she so much as checked the time. Then the show began.

About an hour and a forty-five minutes later Finnick sat stunned. It was amazing. He laughed, but he also felt so moved. Between this and _The Awakening_, his emotions had truly been through the ringer. Mags squeezed his hand. He looked down. He hadn't even realized that they had been holding hands throughout practically the whole show. He chuckled and met her eyes. She mouthed _Thank you_ to him and he squeezed her hand back. As he drove them back to Mags's home, they talked about the play. When they got back to her home they each ate a slice of cake and then Finnick embraced her one last time before he left.

"Thank you for today, my darling boy. You made me so happy." Mags said, her voice thick with tears. Finnick knew if he stayed much longer he wouldn't be able to hold back his own, so he threw her a smile and exited.

When Finnick made it back to his apartment, he found Peeta was a mess. Peeta was standing in his room in his boxers, a button down shirt and black socks. His hair was standing on end as though he had dragged his hands through it a hundred times.

"Whoa, what's going on?" Finnick asked, standing in Peeta's doorway.

"I just… I don't know what I'm doing. What are we going to talk about? I could barely choke out enough words to get her to say yes to a date. How am I supposed to keep up a conversation? What am I gonna do? What am I supposed to wear? Why did I suggest dinner? I should have said a movie, then we wouldn't have to talk!" Peeta said in a rush, barely taking a breath.

"SLOW DOWN! Good lord, look she said yes didn't she?" Finnick said.

"Yes, but…" Peeta started.

"No buts, she said yes. Trust me she did not seem like the kind of girl to say yes to something she didn't want to do. And dinner was a great idea. You will get to know her, she will get to know you and it will be fantastic, okay? Now button up that shirt," Finnick moved to Peeta's closet and grabbed a pair of jeans, "put these on and your topsiders and try to run a brush through your hair. Okay?" Peeta looked at him warily but grabbed the pants and began to put them on.

"Are you picking her up?" Finnick asked as he sat on the bed. Peeta laughed, embarrassed.

"Actually, she's meeting me here. When I told her where I wanted to take her we realized that I live closer than she does and she thought it was ridiculous for me to waste gas to pick her up. So I told her to meet me here and then I'd drive us over," Peeta said, dragging his fingers forward through his hair.

"Good luck trying to pay for the meal tonight bro," Finnick said and slapped Peeta on the back. The doorbell sounded through the apartment, and Finnick turned to Peeta with a gleam in his eye.

"I do believe I'll be getting that," Finnick said. He pranced through the living room and flung open the door to reveal Katniss in a cream-colored sweater, brown skirt and boots. Her hair was down. She looked utterly shocked to see Finnick.

"Well, well, well, we meet again," Finnick teased. She looked utterly shocked and tried to look around Finnick as though she had the wrong place.

"Don't worry, you've got the right place. I'm just the roommate. Come on in, he's just putting on his finishing touches. He'll be out in a second." Finnick laughed.

She entered cautiously and stood in the entryway while Finnick moved further into the apartment. Peeta emerged and stopped at the sight of Katniss. Finnick had to control his urge to cackle. The boy had it bad. Finnick looked over at Katniss and seeing her olive skin, he couldn't stop his mind from flashing to Annie's fair skin, lightly brushed with freckles, and thought of her green eyes. He physically shook his head to get the image out. What was happening to him? Why was she always there? He was planning on going to the bookstore the following Tuesday to see her. She said she wanted to see him. She actually said the words out loud. There was no mistaking it. And he _really_ wanted to see her again.

The rest of the night passed by uneventfully. He went out for a drink with his friend Thom, but came straight home. At eleven, Peeta still wasn't back. Hmmm. About half an hour later, Finnick heard the door open. He stepped out of his room to see what was up. Peeta stood with his back against the door. Finnick didn't miss his flushed cheeks or the way his lips were red from use. His eyes met Finnick's and a large grin spread across his features.

"I'm a goner."

Finnick smiled back at him. He knew the feeling.

* * *

On Tuesday as soon as his lunch break rolled around, Finnick jumped into his car and drove straight to the bookstore. _She should be there_. He kept repeating that to himself. This was the time that he had seen her the past two times at the bookstore, so naturally she should be there again. This thinking was rewarded when he stepped into the store and saw her checking a customer out at the front. Her eyes flew to his and stayed there, even as she answered the customer's question, and didn't drift back until she took his money. She handed the older man back his change and wished him a good day. Finnick moved to her when she was no longer occupied.

"Hey." Finnick said as he approached.

"Hey." She answered shyly. The silence was deafening. They simply stood in each other's powers for several moments, staring at one another. Finally, Finnick broke the spell and reached into his pocket.

"I brought you this." He said as he held out the tea bag, "I would have brought you a cup of tea, but I only get so much time for lunch and I didn't want to waste it standing in line."

"Oh, thank you." She seemed genuinely surprised as she took the packet from him. Their fingers brushed, and Finnick couldn't hold back his smile.

"Peppermint," she read off of the teabag.

"Yeah, it's what you had at the coffee shop the other day," Finnick replied sheepishly.

"Thank you, it's my favorite," she said. "Umm we have a microwave in the back. I mean tea sounds good. Would you want to…" She paused, clearly struggling with what she wanted to say.

"Would you like to go to the back with me so I can make tea?" she asked. He nodded and began to follow her until she stopped suddenly and turned around.

"Wait, did you say it's your lunch break?" she asked as worry clouded her features.

"Yes, I did, but that's no matter. Come on, let's get you some tea," Finnick insisted.

"But you need to eat," she said. She sounded worried, which made Finnick nervous. Was she trying to get rid of him? He wanted to smack himself. Since when did he get nervous?

"No, I'm good. I had a big breakfast, and I have a granola bar in my desk for later. Really, it's no problem," he reassured her.

"Okay…" She still looked unsure so he gave her his best smile. The one that usually got him whatever he wants. He was shocked when she just looked at him more intensely, as though he was a puzzle she wanted to figure out.

"Seriously though, my roommate owns a bakery so I am very well fed," he added to try and appease her. She smiled, and this time it reached her eyes. It was then that he noticed her hair was in a fishtail braid that was pulled forward over her right shoulder. There were a few pieces down around her face, and he thought they framed her features perfectly. She turned and they finally began their journey to the back again. They entered a small room with a table, a coffee maker, a mini-fridge, and a microwave. She pulled a mug from a tiny cabinet and then turned to him.

"Would you like some coffee or anything?" she asked.

"Oh, I'm good. Thanks though," he said. She quickly filled her cup with water from a water bottle from the fridge. She dropped the tea bag in and stuck the mug in the microwave. She sat down at the table and motioned for him to do the same.

"So, how was your weekend?" she asked. He couldn't contain his excitement at the memory of his day with Mags.

"It was great! On Saturday, it was my nanny's birthday. You know the one I bought _The Awakening_ for? Oh, she loved the first edition by the way. So I took her to brunch and then to see a play. We had a great time. I- I love her," he said. Annie couldn't help but notice how his eyes lit up when he was talking about his nanny. The microwave beeped, interrupting them. Annie quickly took her now steaming tea cup out and returned to the table.

"Which play? Was it good?" she continued on.

"It was terrific. It was _The Goat, or Who is Sylvia_ by Edward Albee. Such a great play. It's down at the Undermain." Finnick noticed a look of recognition cross over her face.

"Wait, the Undermain?" she asked

"Yep," Finnick confirmed. She began to laugh and Finnick furrowed his brow.

"What?" he asked. She just looked at him and laughed more. When she finally stopped, she took a deep breath.

"Did you take your nanny to the matinee show?" she asked, as a smile spread across her lips.

"Yes." Finnick replied confused. He didn't understand what she would possibly be laughing about.

"My friend Johanna is the house manager there and on Sunday night she came over and would not stop talking about how she had seen the most beautiful man at the Saturday matinee," she said. Finnick raised his eyebrows at her.

"She said she would have jumped his bones had he not been with his grandma. Although she did say that being with an old lady probably made him even more attractive," she continued and Finnick smirked at this.

"I have no doubt in my mind that she was talking about you." Annie said, leaning back in her chair and bringing the mug to her lips. He watched her blow across the tea before she took a sip and grinned at her

"Beautiful, huh?" he asked. She rolled her eyes.

"Her words, not mine," she said and he laughed. They spent the rest of his lunch break sitting and talking. They didn't talk about anything important, but still, they were talking and for Finnick that was good enough. He stayed until the absolute last second before he had to go back to work, but he made sure to ask when she was working next.

"Well, I open tomorrow, but I have the same hours as today on Thursday," she explained.

"Can I come see you again?" Finnick asked hesistantly. She smiled and it looked so genuine that Finnick could practically feel his heartbeat slow down waiting for her response.

"I'd like that."


	5. Chapter 5

**I don't own THG and a big thanks to for-prim for being an awesome beta and putting up with my continued mistakes (I'll get this comma thing right one day)**

They fell into an easy pattern, though it was marked by a fragility that terrified Finnick. His visits during his lunch hour on Tuesday and Thursday became expected, but he still ended every visit by asking her if he could return. Annie tried her hardest to not become attached, but it seemed to be inevitable. Finnick was too pleased by this new arrangement to dare and push it any further. He always brought her a tea bag, except for one Thursday, when he brought her a bottle of orange juice after Annie said she was getting sick.

"Vitamin C, you know. It's the best way to try and beat a cold before it takes hold of you," he explained sheepishly when she raised her eyebrows at this offering.

He learned that she was twenty-three and a recent college graduate. She had gone to school in the city and then decided to stick around.

"I just figured, I have to start my real life somewhere, might as well be here," she said.

"Not back home?" Finnick asked gently. They hadn't really broached this subject before. He just knew that she was from Mississippi and had come to college with her friend Johanna.

"Oh god no, I didn't see a future for myself there. I mean I know I'm not doing too much here, but I need to at least try and do something before I just give up and go home," she said. Finnick frowned at this, although he could understand. He actually had moved back home to Texas after college with Peeta. Of course he always brushed it away with the excuse that he couldn't turn down the job offer he'd received, but in reality he had jumped at the chance to come back and be near his family and Mags again. Peeta had returned with the intention of taking over the bakery. Annie's voice broke him from his thoughts.

"I mean, no offense. I know you're from here, but honestly there are no opportunities for me back home unless I wanted to be a kindergarten teacher or a nurse," she said sheepishly.

"Well, what do you want to do?" Finnick asked, interested in her answer. She laughed.

"I have no idea!" she answered. This answer was very unexpected. Annie had always struck him as someone who knew exactly what she was doing. Sure sometimes she stared off into the distance and repeated herself, but she always came right back to him.

"But I know I like it here, and I've made a bit of a life for myself here. Plus, Johanna's here," she said. She often spoke of her friend Johanna in ways that only further intrigued Finnick. From what she'd said, Johanna was nothing like Annie.

"Is she your roommate?" Finnick pressed. Annie had never actually spoken about her living situation.

"No, I actually live alone. I think if Johanna and I lived together our friendship would be over," Annie chuckled. "She's so loud and spontaneous. She stays up all night doing God knows what with God knows who, and I stay up all night watching things on my DVR. We're very different, but I love her. We're good for each other. I can calm her down, and she sometimes helps me break out of my comfort zone. She's always been a constant in my life and I'm so glad for it"

Finnick was always surprised when Annie went into details about her life. She was often very closed off regarding her personal life. They usually just discussed books, movies, or different restaurants that they had been to. Finnick had shared about Mags and stories about Peeta's few mishaps in their kitchen, but neither had gone into any deeply personal territory.

"She sounds like something special," Finnick said. Annie frowned at this and Finnick didn't quite know what to make of that. Did she think he was making fun of her friend? Or that he thought Johanna sounded more interesting than Annie? He hoped not - Annie was the most interesting person he had discovered in a long while. He actually hadn't told Peeta about their weekly meetings yet. He didn't want to jinx it. Telling Peeta about it would mean it was something he was excited about. If he was excited about it, he could be disappointed by it.

"So, living by yourself. What's that like?" Finnick asked, attempting to move past the uncomfortable moment. She smiled at him and took another sip of her drink before continuing.

* * *

"We're going out," Peeta's voice broke Finnick out of his thoughts. Finnick snapped his head to look at his roommate. Peeta moved into the kitchen and began to pull out two shot glasses and a bottle of whiskey. He filled them both up and immediately tossed one back. Finnick quickly moved to the kitchen, concerned with his roommate's behavior.

"Dude, what's going on?" Finnick asked as Peeta handed him the second shot glass and motioned for him to take it. Finnick reluctantly took the shot, cringing as it burned his throat.

"Remind me to buy us better whiskey," Finnick groaned as he shook his head in an attempt to rid himself of the feeling of the cheap drink moving through his system.

"It's Katniss," Peeta started. "Things were going really well. We've been out five times now but then today I called her and she started saying a bunch of stuff like we were moving too fast and she needed to figure out her feelings for me. I don't know, man. I thought this was it you know? I mean I know it is. This is it for me. I don't know. I just need to get drunk."

Finnick nodded. While he didn't exactly agree with this sentiment, he was willing to do whatever Peeta thought he needed at this moment. Finnick could tell he was heartbroken. He could hardly stop talking about Katniss the past couple of weeks. It was another reason Finnick was hesitant to tell his friend about Annie. Peeta was falling in love and Finnick was what? Getting to know someone over his lunch break?

"Okay, bud. Let's get you a drink," Finnick stated as he grabbed his jacket and keys. Finnick would not be drinking tonight. He knew his responsibility for the night would be to take care of his friend. Peeta whooped and threw his arm around Finnick as they exited their apartment. They climbed into Finnick's car and Finnick drove them to one of their usual watering holes. It was fairly packed considering it was a Friday night. Peeta headed straight for the bar and ordered a pint of Guinness. Finnick breathed a sigh of relief. At least he wasn't hitting the whiskey hard, although at the rate Peeta was gulping down his beer and signaling for another one, Finnick's relief was short-lived.

"Come on bud, grab your beer and let's find a table," Finnick said as he steered his friend to a nearby empty table. Peeta practically fell into his seat. Finnick sat next to him, waiting for Peeta to speak.

"I just don't understand what she meant by 'too fast.' We only kissed. I kept my hands to myself! She seemed really into me!" Peeta began and threw his head into his hands.

"I'm sorry, man," Finnick reached over and slapped Peeta on the back. He was determined not to bash Katniss. He knew that wouldn't end well, and he just wanted to give his friend his condolences. He was beginning to empathize a bit too much with a girl not being as into him as he was her. Peeta took another long pull from his beer. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and looked over at Finnick.

"Are you not drinking?" Peeta asked with a confused look painting his face.

"Nah, someone's gotta be the DD!" Finnick responded with a smile on his face. Peeta chuckled, which Finnick took as a good sign, and then stood up.

"Well, in that case, I'm gonna go take a shot," Peeta said as he stood up and headed back to the bar. The smile on Finnick's face faded as he watched his friend walk away from the table. This probably wasn't going to end well. Best-case scenario he would have to pull over while Peeta threw up on the side of the road. Worst-case scenario he would have to pry Peeta's cell phone out of his hand to keep him from drunk dialing Katniss and _then_ pull his car over so Peeta could throw up on the side of the road.

His eyes fell upon a girl with short brown hair making her through the crowd. Finnick thought she looked familiar. She was holding two drink glasses above her head.

"Another! Baaaaaa!" The girl cried. Finnick was shocked. Had she just made a sheep noise? In a bar? What? His eyes followed the girl as she sat down at a table with two other girls. He saw her slide into a seat next to a blonde and a brunette with her back to him.

Wait.

He recognized the back of her head. _Jesus, really_? _He could recognize the back of her head._

Annie.

He strained to hear her voice.

"Jo, I've already had two!" Annie whined.

"Exactly! You've only had two. Now drink!" the girl, who Annie had called Jo replied as she set one of the drinks in her hand in front of Annie and fixed her with a glare that scared even Finnick. _I guess that's Johanna_.

Finnick watched Annie's hand wrap around the glass and lift it. Johanna threw her head back and laughed, bringing the glass in her own hand to her mouth. He tore his eyes away from the scene and scanned the bar for Peeta. He was filled with a brief panic when he didn't find Peeta immediately. The panic was not quelled when his yes landed on him and he saw Peeta on a barstool speaking to a redhead in a precariously short skirt. Finnick could tell his friend was drunk by the way he was laughing. Peeta threw his head back, but then it fell so far forward that his chin rested on his chest for a second before he would look back up. The redhead was resting her hand of Peeta's arm. Finnick needed to get Peeta out of a situation Finnick knew he was going to regret. Finnick had just stood up and began to cross to the bar when he felt a hand on his shoulder. At first Finnick thought it might just be a patron trying to get by in the crowded bar, but he came to a complete stop when the hand squeezed his shoulder. He turned around and looked down into the brown eyes of Johanna.

"You look really familiar. Darling, have we met before?" she asked him. He hesitated, unsure of how to answer. He took her hand of his shoulder and smiled lightly; he really needed to go get Peeta.

"I don't think so," he answered.

"Well damn, you know how to shut a girl down," she said, but she had a smirk on her face so he knew he hadn't really hurt her feelings. He chuckled.

"No, it's not like that. Not really. It's just I'm here with my friend, he got into a fight with the girl he's dating so he wanted to blow off some steam. I'm trying to look out for him and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid," Finnick explained and pointed Peeta out to Johanna.

"Ahhh, I didn't realize Stupid had red hair and wore a skirt that showed off her hoo-ha," she said, smirk still firmly in place. Finnick laughed at her candor. She stuck her hand out, "Johanna." Finnick shook her hand and responded with his own name. He looked for any signs of recognition, but saw none. He inwardly frowned. He guessed Annie hadn't spoken to her friends about him.

"Let me take care of this," Johanna practically purred as she pushed past Finnick and strode purposefully towards Peeta and the redhead. Finnick watched in awe as she effectively stepped in between the little space remaining between them and threw her arms around Peeta. She turned around and stared the girl down with one of the glares that Finnick was already scared of, having only seen two of them. He heard her over the crowd, she spoke so clearly and confidently.

"You can go now," she said, utterly dominating the other girl. Peeta looked completely dumbstruck. Finnick walked up to them.

"Peeta, I'd like you to meet my new friend Johanna," Finnick said. Peeta threw his head back in laughter.

"Hi, Johanna. I'm Peeta, it's so nice to meet you. Would you like a drink?" Peeta slurred. Johanna laughed at this and turned to Finnick.

"He's precious! Where can I get one?" she laughed. Peeta's eyes lost their brightness.

"Well, at least someone wants me," Peeta muttered. Johanna turned back in surprise.

"No, where did my happy boy go?" she asked as she looked at Finnick, who sighed. The bad part of the evening was coming. Johanna noticed this and took pity on the man who was just trying to be a good friend. Johanna placed her hands on Peeta's shoulders.

"Hey, look at me," she said softly. Peeta did, and she continued. "This is what we're going to do. You're gonna buy me a drink and then we're going to go sit at my table over there and you are going to tell me the whole story, okay?" Johanna said as she helped Peeta to his feet. She looked back at Finnick.

"Get me a 7&7. Put it on his tab and bring it over to the table in the corner. I'm gonna take care of this for now," she said as she led Peeta away. Finnick was relieved for a moment that it seemed his friend might not be headed to a dark place before it hit him.

_Annie's at her table_.

Shit. He didn't want her to see him here. He didn't think they were quite ready for interactions outside of the bookstore yet. At least he didn't think they were. Right now they were in a little bubble that Finnick was positively terrified of bursting.

He quickly got the drink order filled and began to make his way to the table. Maybe Annie had left. Maybe he could just set the drink down and then leave and she wouldn't even notice him. Maybe she was talking to someone else. His blood stopped cold at the idea of Annie with another guy, but he kept walking. He got within earshot of the table where Johanna was making introductions. Annie and the blonde at the table smiled at Peeta. Johanna looked Finnick's way and waved her hand.

"Are you gonna stand there all night or are you gonna bring me my drink?" Johanna shouted at him, much louder than she needed to. The entire table turned to look at him and he couldn't focus on anyone but Annie. He saw her eyes widen as she took him in. Johanna watched her friend's reaction with interest.

"I know, he's pretty right? I found myself a couple of lookers," Johanna said. Annie finally broke her eye contact and turned in her seat. She grabbed her purse and stood up.

"I need to go." Annie said with more force than he had heard from her yet as she pushed past Finnick and headed to the entrance of the bar.

"What? Annie, what are you talking about?" Johanna shouted after her, gobsmacked by her friend's behavior. Finnick turned to Johanna and thrust her drink into her hand.

"Can you take care of him?" he asked, nodding to Peeta, who was engrossed in telling a story to the blonde girl at the table – the blonde looked torn between his tale and the drama playing out before her eyes.

"What?" Johanna asked incredulously.

"I'll be back I promise, I just need to take care of something. Can you watch him until I get back? Look, he has my number in his phone if you need me," Finnick explained. He wasn't going to take no for an answer. He needed to talk to Annie. He practically ran out of the bar and found her standing near the curb trying to hail a cab. He walked up next to her.

"Care to explain what that was about?" he asked. She whipped her head around and locked her eyes on his. She shook her head and took a few steps away from him and continued her search for an empty cab.

"Please let me drive you home," Finnick blurted out. She just shook her head again.

"Please. At least let me save you a few bucks," he practically begged. When Annie looked at him again, she had tears in her eyes.

"I don't want you to drive me home. I don't want you to know where I live. I don't want you to know anything more about me. I hate that you know where I work. That you know where I'm from. That you now know my best friend. That you met me at all," Annie spoke as the tears began to fall.

Her words chilled Finnick to the bone. She voiced his biggest fear. That he was the only one in this thing. She spotted a cab and before Finnick could stop her she darted out into the street and flung herself into the backseat. Finnick was in shock from her words that struck him like poisonous darts. He felt wetness flow down his cheeks and for a moment he wondered when it had started to rain. He held his hand out and felt nothing. It was then he realized he was crying. He wiped his eyes and headed back inside. He saw Johanna eyeing him curiously as he approached the table.

"Where's Annie?" she asked knowingly.

"She took a cab home. Peeta, it's time to go," Finnick said, his voice devoid of any emotion. Johanna stood up to help Peeta as he got up from the table.

"It was so nice to meet y'all. Johanna, Madge, you are lovely girls who deserve all the happiness in the world," Peeta slurred as the blonde giggled and Johanna rolled her eyes. Johanna thrust a piece of paper into Finnick's pocket. Finnick was completely unprepared for the contact.

"Darling, don't worry I'm just giving you my number," Johanna explained. Finnick raised his eyebrows at this.

"No funny business. Just if you want to _talk_," Johanna's voice spoke volumes as she emphasized talk. Clearly she thought he had some explaining to do based on Annie's reaction tonight, and he figured Annie wouldn't give Johanna the explanation she was craving.

"Okay," Finnick replied and nodded at her. "I'll give you a call." He threw his arm around Peeta's shoulders.

"Let's get you home buddy. You seem tired," Finnick said. Peeta nodded and his chin came to a resting point on his chest.

"Those girls were nice, but they weren't as pretty as Katniss. Or as quiet as Katniss. Or as-" Peeta continued to blabber. Finnick sighed. It was going to be a long drive home.


	6. Chapter 6

**I don't own THG. and a big thanks to For-Prim for being a fabulous beta! Anyways I hope y'all have a happy new year and enjoy!**

Annie curled up in the back of the cab. She drew her knees up to her chin and let out a shaky breath.

"Where to?" the cab driver asked. Annie met his eyes in the rearview mirror. He looked away almost immediately. She knew her eyes were probably rimmed with red, but she knew that crying girls were probably nothing new to the cabbie, that crying was probably something that occurred multiple times per night. This thought was enough to bring at least a small smile to her face, comforted by the fact that she would not be alone in her suffering tonight. To the cab driver she would just be another sad girl whose night was ruined by a boy.

"The village, please," Annie answered quietly. She was glad for each rotation of the wheels that put distance between her and Finnick. He was the last person she expected to see tonight. She hadn't thought about him once while she was with Johanna and Madge, which she considered quite the accomplishment. He had been taking up far too much space in her thoughts for her liking. As soon as she saw him tonight she had to wonder whether her subconscious hadn't conjured him. But no, he was really there in the flesh, bringing Johanna a drink and was apparently going to _sit down_ with her. She couldn't handle that. But what she really couldn't handle was the look she saw in his eyes. There was an apology there like he knew he was treading dangerous ground. The fact that he seemed to know her and what she was and wasn't ready for scared her the most.

When they had their first encounter she brushed it off as a handsome man flirting the way he would with any girl he encountered. He was extremely handsome, no doubt about it and she gave into his charms for a moment, but that was it. At least, she thought that was it. She didn't give him or his offer to discuss the novel a second thought until the day she saw him at the outdoor market reading _the book_. It honestly shocked her, that she could have possibly made an impression on someone like him. She did her best to rationalize that he was just doing it for his nanny that he had mentioned (she tried not to focus on how adorable it was that he still called her his nanny) or that he had merely been enraptured by the book after she read a passage (it would be hard not to be) and that it had nothing to do with her.

But then he came back to the store and said her name, effectively dashing any illusion she could have created in her head. She should've known something was different about him when she actually spent more than five minutes talking with him during their first encounter. She never did that. She was always polite to customers but she was never one to actually engage in conversations. She dreaded it when other people attempted it with her. She often felt clouded with embarrassment over her initiation of conversation at their first meeting. She really was just surprised at the man who was buying a specially requested edition of _The Awakening_.

She arrived at her apartment complex in about fifteen minutes. She paid and thanked the driver. She walked to her door and then paused. She knew what was waiting on the other side of the door was a living room floor covered in shoes, scarves, and books. Her drying rack was set up in the middle of the room. She needed to clean her apartment so badly, but she knew she wouldn't. She wasn't ready to go home. She stepped back and took off to the next building of apartments. She stopped in front of a familiar door and knocked. She heard footsteps through the door and soon it opened. Annie smiled when she saw Marvel's face, but Marvel looked surprised to see her

"Hey boo, what are you doing here?" Marvel asked. Annie rolled her eyes.

"My night out with Jo and Madge didn't really go as planned, " she answered.

"Do you wanna come in? I've got wine and Netflix. Your favorites," Marvel said teasingly. He stepped back and Annie walked into an apartment that was essentially a copy of her own, just much cleaner. She inhaled the scent of gingerbread that was emanating from a candle on his coffee table. She was often jealous of his ability to make his apartment feel so like a home. Her apartment was just piled high with crap that she couldn't bring herself to throw away. Sometimes she felt like her apartment was closing in on her, and escaping to Marvel's was always a welcome respite. She settled on the couch and immediately picked up his Wii controller to search through titles on Netflix.

"What did you do tonight?" she called across the small space to where he was grabbing cups for the two of them.

"I had a date, but it was a dud. The guy was a lighting designer, and I'm all for being passionate about your job but this was just too much. He would not stop talking about it," Marvel answered as he made his way back to the couch, a cup in each hand.

"Ooooh plastic cups," Annie cooed as she took one from him. She took a sip and her face scrunched in response. "Is this Franzia?" she coughed.

"Only the best for you, my sweet," Marvel chuckled at her facial expression. "Yeah, it's about all I can afford and it goes a long way. Why else do you think I'm agreeing to go on dates with lame guys? I'm trying to get a free dinner out of it." Annie frowned at this but didn't say anything. She didn't want to have a pity party, she just wanted to blow off a little steam from her night so she continued to drink her bad wine.

"So, what happened to mess up your girls night?" Marvel asked. His voice laced with curiosity. Annie sighed. She didn't want to get into it.

"Nothing, just dumb boy stuff. You know how that is," she said in what she hoped was a nonchalant manner. Confusion flashed across Marvel's face.

"But you don't really have issues with boy stuff. Jo defintely does, but you…" Marvel trailed off, and Annie hoped and silently prayed that he wouldn't put two and two together. "Wait a second, does this have to do with bookstore guy?" Marvel asked excitedly. Annie groaned.

"It totally does. Annie, what happened?" Marvel prodded her. Marvel was the only person she had told about Finnick, albeit it wasn't much. It had been another wine filled night that had led her to spilling that she had a man who came to see her at work. Marvel had taken to calling him either the bookstore guy or her gentleman caller. She hadn't told Johanna yet for fear of what Jo would do. Johanna had a tendency to baby her and she didn't need her to make her feel like even more of an emotionally stunted fool.

"Nothing happened!" Annie exclaimed, tired of this conversation already.

"Annie, please don't lie to me. You know you can tell me anything," he said gently. Annie immediately softened at this and met his eyes. He was right. Annie loved Marvel with everything she had and she knew he loved her right back. He was the best discovery she'd made in college. She leaned her head against his shoulder and sighed. She had him, Johanna, and Madge. She was suddenly overwhelmed by a feeling of contentment that had been missing all night. She yawned and closed her eyes.

"Can we talk about this later? I'm very sleepy," Annie mewed. She felt Marvel's arm wrap around her and she was lulled into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

Finnick hardly slept that night. Whenever he closed his eyes all he could see was Annie's tear-stained face telling him she wished they'd never met. He didn't know what had triggered the reaction. He wanted to blame it on the drinks she had consumed that night, but he knew that was just wishful thinking. He didn't understand what was going on in her head. She was an enigma to him. They had finally reached a point where they were spending time together on a semi-regular basis, just twice a week for about 45 minutes, but that was a vast improvement in Finnick's eyes. Until last night of course, when she had once again run away from him. All he wanted to do was speak with her again. Ask her to please explain what was going on. Why she seemed so _afraid_ of him. It was driving him crazy.

He had given up on sleep for the time being. Tossing and turning wasn't going to do him any good. Tomorrow, or today, he supposed was Saturday so he had the day off. He could catch up on sleep later. He headed into the living room and found a channel that was showing reruns of _Frasier_. Hopefully watching another man's romantic foibles would make him feel better about his own. Eventually he fell into sleep on his couch.

The smell of coffee filled Finnick's nostrils slowly, and he blinked awake, slowly taking in his surroundings. It took him a moment to recognize his living room, where he had fallen asleep on the couch. He looked up and saw Peeta moving around the kitchen.

"Hey, how are you feeling this morning?" Finnick croaked out. Peeta looked up, surprised to see his friend up. Peeta shot Finnick a lopsided grin.

"I've been better. But I am making pancakes if you're interested," Peeta answered. Finnick nodded and stretched. He stood up and lumbered into the kitchen where he poured himself a cup of coffee. Finnick and Peeta drank coffee and ate their breakfast in silence. Finnick couldn't tell if Peeta was hungover or if he merely could sense that Finnick needed time alone. As Finnick showered and dressed, he couldn't stop seeing Annie's face. He felt overcome with shame. For what, he didn't know. He just knew he needed to fix this.

When he went to hang up his jacket that he wore the previous night, he remembered the slip of paper that Johanna had shoved into his pocket. He pulled it out and stared at the numbers on the sheet for a minute before he grabbed his phone and quickly added the number to his contacts. He sat on his bed and wrote out a message to the girl.

_Hey Johanna, it's Finnick. We met last night. You said you wanted to talk?_

It wasn't ten minutes later that he heard his phone buzz with a response.

_Hey, yeah I've got some stuff to discuss with you. Can I call you or are you one of those people who has to talk in person?_

Finnick chuckled, even sober (he hoped she was sober) she was just as blunt as she was last night. He quickly typed back a response.

_Calling is fine._

And he waited.

His cell phone rang a minute later.

"So how exactly do you know my Annie?" Johanna asked, not even bothering with formalities.

"Hello Johanna, nice to hear your voice," Finnick responded drolly.

"Cut the crap and just tell me how you know my baby girl," Johanna demanded. Finnick sighed and sat down on the edge of his bed.

"I met her at the bookstore she works at. We…," Finnick stopped wondering exactly how to explain their situation. This was the same reason he hadn't told Peeta. He didn't even know how to define it. "We got coffee once, and I visit her at work sometimes," Finnick continued. Johanna was silent. "That's all, I swear," he finished.

"You got coffee with her?" Johanna asked, her voice laced with disbelief.

"Yes," Finnick quickly answered.

"And you visit her at work? Like how often?" She asked fervently.

"I visited twice a week for almost three weeks," Finnick replied.

"She never told me," Johanna practically whispered to herself. "Why wouldn't she tell me?" Finnick didn't know what to say to that. "She should have told me if she was seeing someone. I mean the last person she dated was Marvel! This is a big deal!"

"Um, we're not… I mean Annie and I aren't… dating," Finnick said bashfully. He heard Johanna release an exasperated sigh on the other end of the phone.

"Are you or are you not going and seeing her on a semi-regular basis?" Johanna demanded.

"Well, yes," Finnick responded.

"And you are romantically interested in her?" Johanna asked, clearly annoyed with him. Finnick paused. He didn't really want to tell this girl that he didn't know that he liked her friend. He didn't know Johanna or what she wanted from him.

"I SAID are you romantically interested in her! I'm not having some guy fuck with her heart," she said as rage bubbled in her voice. This only angered Finnick. Of course, she would assume that he would hurt Annie. Not the other way around. As if Annie wasn't capable of completely destroying him.

"Do I like your friend? Yes I do, but that doesn't matter because she made it clear last night that she doesn't want me to come around any more," Finnick shouted into the phone. He breathed heavily and immediately regretted letting go of his anger in that way. It dawned on him that this was the first time that he actually said the words out loud. He liked Annie. He wanted to hold her hand, their fingers intertwined. He wanted to embrace her, her body pressed against his. He wanted to sit in that back room of the bookstore and talk for hours and hours with her. Shit.

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to yell. I just… I have no idea what made her so upset at me, and I'm guessing you don't either. No offense," Finnick said.

"You're right. I don't. She didn't tell me she had a boy in her life," Johanna spat out. "Whatever, but listen- if she's really pissed at you, give her some space. She'll come around. And by that I mean wait a week and then try and talk to her because if you leave it to her, you'll never see her again," Johanna said and then the phone went silent. Her last words haunted Finnick.

_You'll never see her again_

* * *

Annie felt something cold and icy press against her face, effectively waking her up. She sat up groggily and glared at Marvel who was holding a can of soda. He laughed.

"Annie, it's one in the afternoon. I love you but I want to watch TV and you're on my couch. Now you know you're welcome to stay but know that in about an hour I'm going to do Insanity and if you're still here, you have to do it with me," Marvel said, his voice teasing. Annie groaned and rubbed a hand down her face only to look at it and see mascara and eyeliner smudges on it.

"Oh yeah, you fell asleep with your makeup on. So, why don't you run into the bathroom and wash up with your stash of toiletries that you think I don't know about," Marvel said. Annie blushed. She ended up sleeping on his couch so often that she snuck a bag of necessities like face wash, deodorant, and a toothbrush into the bottom drawer in his bathroom. She dragged herself off of the couch and walked into the bathroom where her raccoon eyes stared back at her from the mirror. She quickly washed her face and brushed her teeth. She walked out and gathered her stuff.

"No Insanity for you?" Marvel called from the couch. Annie shook her head and waved goodbye. Marvel blew her a kiss as she left his apartment and trudged back to her own. She stepped inside and was immediately visually assaulted by the mess that covered her floor. She sighed and kicked aside a pair of shoes and stepped around her clothing rack. She walked into her bedroom and peeled her shoes off and pulled out her cell phone. It had died in the middle of the night so she quickly plugged her charger in and restarted her phone. The first thing she saw was that she had seven missed calls from Johanna. Annie closed her eyes. She could only imagine what she wanted to talk to her about. Probably about how she stormed out of a bar last night with Finnick on her heels.

_Finnick_.

Oh God, the shame of her actions last night flooded Annie's being and she dropped to the ground in a ball. Seeing Finnick outside of the bubble that they had created caused something to snap in her. He glowed in the low lighting of the bar and it made the entire situation seem more real. That he was real. That he was someone that she could get attached to. That she could want and desire. Someone that could be disappointed in her.

She looked at her phone when she realized it was lit up. Johanna was calling again.

"Hello?" Annie answered.

"Thanks for telling me about your man," Johanna snapped at her. Annie immediately cringed. This was exactly what she had been trying to avoid.

"I don't have man," Annie responded. Trying to sound as cool and collected as possible.

"Yes you do. You have a beautiful man who likes you and comes to visit you at work," Johanna said.

"How do you know that?" Annie asked. Panic beginning to rise into her voice.

"Well, since you like to keep secrets from me, Finnick is interviewing for a position as my new best friend," Johanna replied.

"I wasn't keeping secrets from you, I just didn't think I had anything to tell,"Annie explained. Johanna scoffed.

"Did you tell Marvel?" Johanna asked snippily. Annie was silent.

"Figures," Johanna said, her voice eerily quiet. "I think you should give this Finnick guy a chance. He seems nice. He didn't hit on any girl at the bar last night, and turned down my advances. I think he really likes you."

Annie wasn't sure how to respond. She knew to some degree that he had to like her. He wouldn't go through the trouble of visiting her if he didn't, but to hear someone put voice to the words that threatened to overtake her brain was almost too much.

"I have his phone number," Johanna paused. "I gave him mine to ask him about why you freaked when you saw him. I'm going to give it to you, and I expect you to use it. Don't be yourself for five minutes and call him. I know he'll be glad to hear from you."

"I can't," Annie started.

"I said do it!" Johanna shouted. Annie had to pull the phone away from her ear. "I'm texting you his phone number now." The phone clicked off and soon enough in Annie's hand was the combination of numbers that would put her in direct contact with Finnick.

She stared at them. She set her phone down. She showered. She hung up the clothes on her drying rack. She gathered up her shoes. She organized her magazines into a neat stack. She fixed herself some dinner and contemplated having a glass of wine before dismissing the idea. She walked back into her room and stared at her phone. She figured she didn't have anything else left to do. She dialed the number and the phone rang once, twice, three times before a voice answered. A voice she didn't even realized she had been wanting to hear again.

"H-Hello? Finnick? It's me Annie," she said, her voice wavering only the tiniest bit. She could hear him swallow on the other end.

"Annie. Hi! Hi! Um, how did you…" Finnick breathed out. Annie almost laughed at how anxious he sounded.

"Johanna," she answered.

"Right, right. Uh, well, what's going on? How are you? Wait! Are you okay, after last night? Is there something that I did? I have no idea and I'm so sorry," Finnick continued to ramble.

"Finnick," Annie said. Finnick stopped. "I was wondering if you'd like to get dinner with me sometime." The silence that immediately followed that question nearly killed her until she finally heard Finnick's answer.

"Yes."

She swore she could hear him smiling through the phone. She smiled too.

* * *

**Feel free to look me up on tumblr. My username there is mereditheo :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**I don't own THG and a big thanks to for-prim for being the speediest beta in the biz**

Everything Annie did the next few days was filled with a certain lightness. A quality that her mind couldn't find the words for. She had actively made plans with Finnick and hadn't attempted to cancel them once. In fact, she had remained calm until the following Tuesday, which was the day of the agreed upon dinner. They had joked that Tuesday seemed to be "their day" and it was settled. Annie felt the first wave of embarrassment immediately after she had called it "their day" but Finnick glided right over her perceived awkward moment with an affirmative answer. He seemed so excited, and that made her excited. Her first bout of nerves came while at work. She was suddenly unsure if he was going to visit her that day. He had the last three weeks. Each time the door opened and the bell rang she jumped.

"I'm not gonna rob you, don't worry," Johanna's voice rang out and Annie sighed in relief.

"It's not that, I just thought you might be someone else," Annie replied. Johanna raised her eyebrows at this.

"Oh, is this when your man normally comes to visit?" Johanna teasingly asked. Annie felt a blush rising and tried her best to fight it. "I'm taking your silence as a yes. You date is tonight right?" Johanna prodded and Annie nodded, realizing that in her mind she had always referred to it as _dinner_ or _plans_. Never a _date_. "He probably didn't want to run out of conversation topics before tonight then. Although if I were you I wouldn't be doing much talking," Johanna continued with a laugh.

"JO!" Annie exclaimed. Johanna moved further into the store, coming to stand directly in front of the counter Annie stood behind

"Relax! I'm only half joking. Now I'm here for a very specific reason. Date prep. First thing's first: where are y'all going?" Johanna asked.

"A seafood restaurant," Annie answered.

"Okay, that's doable. But remember if you order fish, especially salmon remember to bring a mint or gum for afterwards. Now, are you planning on drinking?" Johanna fired at her. She was not kidding when she said she was here for a specific reason. She was clearly a woman on a mission.

"I don't think so. That's probably not a good idea right?" Annie said, suddenly unsure of what she had in mind for the evening.

"Okay look, if he orders a beer or a drink then you can order a glass of wine or a beer or something. One, just one. I love you, but when you get going you can _get going_. And sweetie a lot of times I love that. Getting you drunk is a huge thrill in my life, but tonight I am putting my foot down. One drink," Johanna pounded her fist on the counter to punctuate her statement.

"One drink," Annie repeated.

"Also if you do get wine, remember you're eating seafood so order white wine. Also wear your hair down. Curl it, but pin a few of the front pieces back so it doesn't get in your face or food. Wear a dress, you have nice legs so show them off," Johanna prattled on. Annie nodded along wondering why it was so important to Johanna that she not screw this date up. But Johanna had been telling her what to do for a long time now, so she knew it was best to just shut up and wait for her to finish. Annie zoned back when she guessed Johanna was about to make her closing statement.

"Remember you are a grown woman. You are 23. You have a college degree. You have a job. You have your own apartment…" Johanna said. This snapped Annie back to attention.

"That my parents pay half my rent for," Annie said dryly. Johanna glared at her.

"I wasn't going to bring that up. I am trying to remind you of the things you have going for you. I just want you to take control of your life. Your parents help you out with that one teeny tiny aspect of your life. Whatever. Now I have to go back to work, but you better have fun tonight," Johanna said firmly, her eyes boring holes into Annie's skull; she never broke eye contact as she walked out of the store. When she was gone, Annie rolled her eyes and then dropped her head into her hands. Johanna was always spouting about how she wanted Annie to take control of her life, but Annie sometimes felt that Johanna would rather control her life.

Although she might have a point about the hair thing. She did recall Finnick complimenting her when the front half was pinned back. Annie groaned and stared at the clock. She had six hours until their date. _Her date with Finnick_. She breathed in and went back to stacking books.

* * *

Finnick was not freaking out. Not at all. He was breathing. He kept repeating the same thing over and over again. A mantra.

_Breathe in through the nose. Out through the mouth_

He was fine. He was just about to go on a date with Annie Cresta.

Annie Cresta.

A date.

A date with Annie Cresta.

He was fine. She had asked him out. It was all her idea. Finnick remembered the shock he felt his body go into during that entire conversation. He was lucky he remembered everything they agreed upon. He checked his outfit one last time and then was out the door. She had told him that her apartment complex was difficult to get around if one didn't know where he or she was going so she said to stop on Shady Brook Lane and she would meet him outside. He refused at first, the idea of making her walk outside and picking her up on a street was so ungentleman-like that he could just imagine Mags or his mother hitting him upside the head and saying that all ladies should be escorted from their door to the car, but Annie insisted vehemently. He turned onto the street minutes to seven. It was still light outside and he saw Annie standing on the sidewalk. She was wearing a peach colored dress that ended a few inches above her knees and had short fluttery sleeves. Finnick reminded himself to breathe as he pulled up beside her. He could tell he had just shocked her out of a daze when he made eye contact through the window. Her lips pulled up into a small smile and Finnick immediately threw his car into park along the curb and hopped out. She stepped backwards when she saw him round the car but he just opened the passenger door and held out his hand to her. She gently placed her hand in his as he helped her into the passenger seat. He shut the door and then quickly walked back and slid into the driver's seat.

"Hi," he said quietly, smiling at her.

"Hi," she replied, a giggle escaping her. Finnick just grinned wider. Before he put the car into drive he had to say one thing.

"Thank you for asking me to dinner. Really, thank you," he said. She looked at him right in the eyes and answered.

"You're welcome. Thank you for putting up with my stupid antics Friday night." Finnick chuckled at her statement and began to drive.

"So, you live in the village? I have a few friends that live there, but they're all so spread out." Finnick said, hoping to keep the tone light.

"I know, it's huge. But I live in the Corners. It's nice because it's so close to the jogging trail. Not that I really jog, but I do like to go on walks," Annie said quietly.

"Oh yeah, my friend Thom and I used to run together on the weekends on the trail. We haven't done that in a while though," Finnick returned.

"Hey, at least you did it. I'm the worst about doing real exercise. I love to walk, and I'll occasionally do the stationary bike but other than that nothing. It's hard for me to get motivated, except for swimming because that's more fun than anything else. My friend Marvel, on the other hand, is all about exercise. He runs, he does Insanity, and he lifts weights. The only time I've really tried to run was with him, and half a mile into it he had to leave me behind." Annie laughed at the memory. Finnick joined her.

"He just left you?" he asked, disbelieving.

"Oh no! He tried to get me to keep going but I was so out of breath. I'm pretty sure I just fell to the ground and told him to go on without me," Annie said.

Finnick spent the rest of the short ride to the restaurant listening to Annie and simultaneously imagining what other activities might make her out of breath. It was a glorious thought for him, but he needed to get out of that headspace before he sat across from her for a meal. When they arrived they were immediately seated by a hostess who did her best to try and get Finnick's attention, but Finnick didn't take his eyes off of Annie. The front pieces of her hair were pulled back, and he could see every detail of her lovely face. She looked at him across the table and blushed when she saw his intent look.

The restaurant, which was usually teeming with people on a weekend night was only a little over half full. They perused the menu, briefly mentioning what looked good before the waiter approached to take their drink order. The waiter looked to Annie who suddenly froze and looked to Finnick.

"What are you getting to drink?" she asked timidly. Finnick frowned at this. Everything had been going smoothly.

"I think I'm going to have a Coke, but please order whatever you want," Finnick reassured her. Annie nodded and turned back to the waiter.

"Sweet tea, please," She said, and her voice regained some of the confidence she had spoken with earlier. The waiter nodded and looked at Finnick, who repeated his order of Coke. The waiter left and Finnick feared that silence would overtake them, but much to his surprise Annie broke the silence. And the silence never returned.

Anything that Finnick could have imagined in his head of how this evening would go was nothing compared to the real thing. The conversation flowed based on the rapport they built during lunch breaks at the bookstore. She was an intent listener; her eyes stayed fixed on his as he spoke. It felt as if she was mesmerized by every word. Finnick could relate, as that's how he felt when she spoke. It amazed him how animated she could become when she relaxed. He tried his best to take in every single detail about her. The way her eyes scrunched and her nostrils flared when she laughed- really laughed at something. The way she bit her straw every time before taking a sip of her tea. How precise she was with her knife and fork while eating her mahi-mahi and dirty rice. The food was delicious, but Finnick hardly paid any mind to the taste when she was sitting across from him. She told stories about her friends, and their lives post-college. He told her about how an art history class turned into him working as a public relations intern at a museum that eventually led him down the path he was currently on.

"I actually met Peeta in that class and then found out later that he was from Dallas as well," Finnick told her.

She had him practically doubled in laughter when she told him about a movement class she had taken in college.

"It was part self-defense, part tai chi, and part animal forms. I was NOT prepared for it. At all," she said, shaking her head and biting her straw.

"What are animal forms?" Finnick couldn't help but ask. Annie smiled at him and his stomach flipped.

"They're like ancient Chinese animal forms, I think. We had to learn movements and dances for each one. You know, there's tiger, monkey, mantis, dragon, and some bird that I don't remember. But we had to learn them and perform them as solos for our final. It was by far the strangest class I'd ever taken. It was really fun, but our teacher was a retired circus performer so he was a little out there. He kept telling us that we needed to open our assholes," Annie said, chuckling. Finnick practically spit out the shrimp that he had just popped in his mouth. She laughed at him, eyes crinkled and nostrils slightly flared.

When the check came, Finnick immediately reached for it. Annie thanked him.

"It's my pleasure. I'm just so glad to spend an evening with you," Finnick said, watching the blush climb up Annie's face.

Finnick had absolutely no expectations for the end of the date. He could dream and fantasize, but he knew that he couldn't count on anything happening. So much to his surprise, on the drive back Annie directed him into her apartment complex, explaining the various turns that he would need to make. When he pulled into a parking spot and offered to walk her to her door, he was even more surprised that she accepted. He got out out the car and walked around only to find that Annie had beaten him to her door. She smirked at him.

"I appreciate it, I really do, but I can get my own door from the inside," she said. He smiled sheepishly at her. They walked side-by-side, Finnick's hands shoved in his pockets. He didn't want to push his luck and try something stupid like holding her hand, even though that was pretty much all he wanted to do. The walk was silent, but there was electricity between the two. He knew it; he knew that this was something real. He couldn't be the only one feeling it. He turned his head to look at Annie and his eyes met hers. Neither looked away. Annie slowed her steps and Finnick followed suit. Annie nodded to behind him.

"This is me," she said. Finnick deflated. He didn't want this night to end. He stepped to the side and turned to her door. She stepped forward and moved closer to Finnick. His breath caught in his throat. His eyes dropped to her lips and then went back to her eyes. She was looking at him. Finnick suddenly had no idea what to do. None. He was at a loss until Annie spoke.

"Will you visit me on Thursday?" she practically whispered. Finnick nodded his yes. He didn't trust his voice to work properly. Annie leaned up and pressed a kiss on Finnick's cheek, so dangerously close to his lips that he couldn't help letting a gasp escape from them. Annie stepped back and immediately slid her key into the lock and opened her door.

"Goodnight Finnick," she murmured. Finnick cleared his throat.

"Uh, night. Night, Annie," he said, and with one last smile she disappeared behind her door.

Finnick stood outside her door waiting for his heartbeat to return to normal, and when this seemed to be a pointless task he began the trek back to his car. His steps were lighter than ever. There was an endless amount of clichés that could be said for how he felt in this moment. He was walking on air. He felt weightless. The entire drive home he was in such a daze, nothing registered until he opened the door to his apartment and was greeted with the sight of Peeta and Katniss making out on the couch in the middle of the living room. Finnick loudly cleared his throat to alert the two to his presence. Katniss ripped herself away from Peeta at the sound. Peeta looked around for a bit before his eyes landed on Finnick.

"I see you two have made up. Don't worry I'll just be in my room," Finnick said. He headed straight to his room, barely concealing his grin. He was happy for his friend. He really was, but he wished he could have talked with him about Annie. Finnick still hadn't told Peeta what was going on. He didn't want to feel foolish if things crashed and burned. It _had_ only been four days since Annie ran from him at a bar. Finnick deemed their date to be _very_ successful if the kiss on the cheek was any indication. When Finnick entered his room he walked over to his closet to put his shoes up and then fell back onto his bed. He knew he would get very little sleep tonight, with thoughts of her lips on his skin and seeing her on Thursday on repeat in his brain.

* * *

A knock on her door startled Annie. She had been sitting at her kitchen table, if the term kitchen was used lightly, staring at the same article in a magazine for about fifteen minutes. She looked at the door.

_It couldn't be… could it? Could he have come back?_

Annie stood up and cautiously walked to the door, her hand trembling in anticipation until a voice killed any suspicions she may have had.

"Annie! I know you're in there! Open Up," Marvel shouted through the door. Annie's shoulders sagged. She realized how badly she had been hoping it was Finnick coming back to kiss her, hug her, or _something_. She just wanted him to touch her, and at the same time she was so grateful that he hadn't tried anything. He was the epitome of a perfect gentleman throughout the entire evening, which in turn probably caused these feelings to flare up within her.

Annie opened the door to a smiling Marvel.

"So, how did the big date go?" he asked, his grin widened.

"How do you know he's not still here?" Annie asked, popping her hip out to the side. Marvel laughed and pushed past her into her apartment.

"I know you. This was a guy that you only let come visit you at work, I figured you probably weren't going to invite him in on the first date," he said, turning to Annie. "Besides, this isn't sophomore year." Annie's cheeks colored at his words. Unfortunately, in college Annie had fallen victim to a few phases, including one short-lived party girl phase.

"Yeah because you made great decisions when you were twenty. I still stand by the belief that my few indiscretions were in direct retaliation to having my heart broken by you," Annie replied snippily. Marvel frowned. He hadn't intended to hurt her feelings. He stepped forward and put his hands on her shoulders.

"Hey, you know I don't mean anything. Why don't we sit and you can tell me all about your gentleman caller," he said softly while leading her to the little loveseat that was in her living room.

"So tell me, do you like him?" Marvel asked once they were both situated. Annie bit back a smile and nodded.

"I do. I really do," she answered.

* * *

**Thanks for reading! **


	8. Chapter 8

**I don't own THG and a big thanks to for-prim for being my fabulous Beta. This chapter is super fluffy because life is hard and champagne is expensive.**

Finnick came to bookstore on Thursday, teabag in hand. Surprisingly there was a line at the counter. People were standing with boxes of books and Annie looked completely frazzled. Finnick stood frozen in the doorway unsure of what to do until someone knocked into his back. He stumbled forward a bit and turned around to meet the glare of the middle-aged man who pushed him.

"Don't just stand there. Move! Some of us have places to be," the man bit out. Finnick just matched his gaze and stepped to the side. He gestured with his arm.

"Well, then please, after you," Finnick spat with just as much venom as the man used in his tone earlier. The man huffed away. Finnick shook his head and glanced toward the register. Hearing Finnick's voice, Annie looked up from the counter where she was hastily filling out a small form for the woman standing impatiently before her. She met his eyes and then hurried her pace. Her handwriting became more like chicken scratch before she quickly handed the form to the woman. The next person in line placed a shoebox of books on the counter. Annie managed her most polite smile.

"I'm so sorry, I'll be back in just a moment," she said as she slipped out from behind the counter ignoring the customer's annoyed expression. She walked briskly to Finnick.

"Hey, I'm so sorry. This is a really bad time. There's a book bazaar going on next week and this is one of the drop-off locations. I guess people are doing it on their lunch breaks," she whispered. He nodded.

"No, it's fine. How about we meet for coffee tomorrow at the same place as last time?" Finnick asked. Annie smiled shyly.

"That would be great. Same time?" she responded.

"Yeah, sounds like a plan," Finnick said, a grin spreading across his face. He then remembered the teabag between his fingers. "Oh, here before I forget, I brought you your peppermint tea," he said with a small chuckle. "I know you can't have it now, but it might help on a break later."

Annie took the teabag from his extended hand. An emotion much like gratitude but coupled with something else filled her. Before she could stop herself she leaned up and planted a soft kiss on his cheek. Once again it stole the breath from Finnick's lips. She stepped back and with a final wave she turned around and headed back to the counter. Finnick internally fought to not touch his cheek, so instead he took a couple of deep breaths and watched Annie resume a surprisingly businesslike demeanor. She worked quickly counting books and swiftly checking them for any obvious damage before filling out a form for herself and the customer. She caught his eye once and that broke him from his trance. He nodded goodbye and left the bookstore, now unsure of where to go.

* * *

When Peeta came home from work that evening and mentioned that he was meeting up with Katniss later, Finnick suddenly felt the urge to tell him about Annie. To tell him that he understood it because he'd met a girl too, someone that makes him feel all kinds of things that's he'd never felt with another person before. That he never knew he could get so excited just at the prospect of seeing her or sitting across a table from her and hearing her talk.

Peeta had made himself comfortable on the couch, the same one that he and Katniss had been _very_ comfortable on the other day. Finnick still wasn't done ribbing Peeta about that yet, but he knew that now was not the time if he actually wanted to tell Peeta about Annie. Finnick practically threw himself into the chair with such force that Peeta almost spilled his drink.

"What the hell?" Peeta exclaimed. Finnick just shrugged and turned his entire body to Peeta. He clasped his hands together and brought them underneath his chin.

"Okay, you're being really weird. What's up?" Peeta asked with a suspicious look on his face.

"Nothing's _up_ persay I just wanted to have a little chat you know, it's been so long, I mean you didn't really tell me how you and Katniss got back on good terms," Finnick started. Peeta brightened at the mention of Katniss.

"Oh, well you see…" Peeta began before Finnick cut him off.

"While I do want to hear about it, I actually wanted to tell you something. It might not seem like much but it feels weird that I haven't told you anything about it yet," Finnick said. Peeta's brow furrowed.

"You know that girl that I met at the bookstore when I bought Mags her birthday gift?" Finnick asked. Confusion and then recognition flashed across Peeta's face and he nodded. "Well, I've been seeing her again recently, pretty much just coffee, tea and visits during my lunch break, but…" Finnick broke off with a laugh. He wasn't even looking at Peeta anymore. He was staring off into the distance. Peeta smiled to himself, unsure that he had ever seen his friend look like this.

"We went on a real date the other night and I think… I think there might be something there," Finnick finally finished, a painfully genuine smile painted across his features. He made eye contact with Peeta again only to see his friend covering his mouth with his hand, but his eyes crinkled with joy. Finnick barked in laughter seeing his friend's face.

"You look ridiculous right now," Finnick said while shaking his head.

"You should probably look in a mirror then," Peeta fired back. He leaned over and clapped Finnick on the back. "I'm happy for you man. This could be a really good thing."

"Yeah, it could be," Finnick murmured more to himself.

* * *

Annie approached the same coffee shop at four o'clock, about same time as their previous visit, except that she held different expectations for this one. She was unable to get Finnick off her mind. His visit and handing her the teabag - it all felt so devastatingly _normal_. She had kissed his cheek again, and Annie quite liked the feeling of his breath being released onto her own cheek. Perhaps she'd do it again today and see if she could get the same reaction. She entered the store and saw Finnick sitting at a table with two cups already in front of him and her heart started pounding. She knew he was extremely polite - everything he did screamed of his good manners - but the fact that they were directed at her set something aflame inside of her. Seeing his smile made her burn. He stood up when she got to the table and this time it was her breath that was taken away when he leaned down and pressed an enthusiastic kiss to her cheek. She giggled and blushed. It was so cliché it was almost embarrassing, but then she got to look across the table at his light green eyes and gorgeous smile and she didn't even care.

She wished she could remember everything that happened as they sat across from one another. She wasn't even sure she was speaking sometimes. Certain things stood out to her. Just how much of his teeth showed when he smiled, and how perfect they were. His orthodontist deserved a medal. His voice was so soothing to listen to. Her eyes kept sweeping over his broad shoulders and how his button down stretched across them. Her tea was sweet and sharp as she gulped it down as her eyes raked over his form. Somehow they began discussing books, reminiscent of their last visit to this particular coffee shop. Finnick mentioned a particular book that snapped Annie immediately back into focus.

"Yes! _The Bell Jar_ is just… perfection," Annie sighed. Finnick leaned forward onto the table and nodded as though to silently tell her to continue.

"I mean, I think if I had read any other time than when I did I would have liked it, but I read it at the precise moment in my life when I needed it most. Books can do that you know? If you pick up a particular book at a particular time in your life: they can heal you. They tell you exactly what you need to hear. It's amazing. When I first it, it answered so many questions. It made me feel like I wasn't alone and at the same time it just _ruined_ me," Annie said, fully aware that she probably had crazy eyes right then, but she didn't care. She loved this book. Finnick was just staring at her.

"There's no way I'm not reading this book then," Finnick said so seriously that it shocked her.

"I have about three copies if you want to borrow it," Annie suggested. Finnick nodded.

"That would be perfect," he answered and blinded her with his smile once more. Annie's cheeks flooded with color when she remembered what she had to ask him.

"Finnick, um do you think you could give me a ride back to my place? Jo drove me to work and then Cinna dropped me off here so it would be gre-" Annie was cut off by Finnick's laughter

"Of course I'll drive you home. Plus that way I can borrow the book," he replied. They stood and gathered their things and began the walk to his car. She fell into step next to him and watched as he stuffed his hands into his pockets.

"I don't think I've ever actually seen the elusive Cinna. Just spoken to him on the phone and heard his myth," Finnick joked as Annie laughed lightly.

"He usually works Fridays and Wednesdays. He owns the place and he usually entrusts it to me and the few other people who work there the rest of the time. It's not so big. I can handle it," she said. He walked to the passenger side first and opened her door. She couldn't even roll her eyes, as this was his way of showing her affection with the exception of the spontaneous kiss on the cheek. She liked it. She liked it a lot, but she couldn't help but ache for more. When she got into the car she placed her hand over where his rested on the car door. She didn't look at him she just reveled in the warmth of his hand as she slid into the seat. She then busied herself with buckling her seatbelt. It was so odd, this dance they were doing. It seemed obvious to her that she liked him. She wouldn't spend any time with him or encourage him if she didn't, but he was still so nervous. It was funny when she thought back to when she first met him. He was so self-assured. The idea that she made him nervous was laughable.

The car ride was pleasant and when they got to her complex he immediately turned in and began the route to her building.

"You remembered!" Annie exclaimed when he pulled into a space. She looked over at Finnick and saw the beginnings of a blush climbing his face. "I think it's great! I got lost about six times when I first moved in."

They got out and began the walk. There were a few twists and turns to her particular building and Finnick looked around. He hadn't last time, due to his nerves. His eyes fell upon a rather sizable pool.

"You have a pool! That's so lucky!" Finnick said and turned to Annie who giggled at him.

"Yeah, there's actually quite a few around here. There's another one just past these next two buildings," Annie said and motioned to her right.

"That's so great. I know you said you liked to swim, but I didn't even think that you might have a pool in your complex. Peeta and I live in an old duplex so no pool for us," Finnick said. Annie smiled at him. She looked at the sky and saw that the sun was beginning to go down.

"I love pools at nighttime, when the lights are on and the water seems to glow," Annie said softly.

"We should go swimming," Finnick stated abruptly.

"What?" Annie asked incredulously. Finnick's face fell and then what looked almost like shame began to cloud his features.

"Never mind. I wasn't thinking. I don't know why I said that," Finnick mumbled.

"We should go swimming," Annie said proudly. Finnick looked up at her. "Yes, we should go swimming. It's warm out. No one's in the pool." Finnick looked at her strangely and then grinned. However the grin was short lived.

"I don't have a swimsuit," he said sadly. Annie waved her hand at him and turned around and motioned for him to follow.

"You can just borrow one of Marvel's. I know he's home and y'all are probably about the same size." She marched forward determinedly one building over and knocked on Marvel's door. She heard Finnick behind her and footsteps behind the door. The door swung open and revealed Marvel.

"Hey boo! How-" Marvel trails off when his eyes land on Finnick. His smile widens so much Annie's surprised it doesn't stretch off his face. "Hello kind sir, how do you do? I'm Marvel. Am I to assume that you are my dear Annie's gentleman caller?" Annie gasped at Marvel's brashness and reached forward to slap his chest. Finnick just laughed and stuck out his hand.

"Uh maybe. It's nice to meet you, I'm Finnick," he said smoothly.

"Hey Marv, we'd love to stay and chat but we have decided to go for a swim and I was wondering if you could lend Finnick a pair of your swim trunks." Annie cringed when Marvel made no attempts to hide his eyes sweeping down Finnick's body.

"Okay, so that's settled. I'll be right back. I'm just going to change and grab some towels," she turned to Marvel, "Don't make me regret leaving him alone with you." Marvel and Finnick laughed. She hurried back to her apartment, bypassing the clutter in her living area and heading straight to her room. She pulled off her dress and rooted around in her drawers for her black one piece. It was flattering but was still very modest. As she pulled it on her mind wandered to what Finnick looked like without his shirt on. He certainly seemed to be in good shape. She couldn't take her eyes off his shoulders earlier and now she was going to see them in the flesh. Her stomach clenched. She pulled her dress back over her bathing suit and grabbed two towels from her bathroom and darted back over to Marvel's. When she knocked Marvel and Finnick both opened the door laughing. Finnick was wearing blue Hawaiian print shorts and a plain white t-shirt, his clothes in his hands. She was going to have to wait to see him bare-chested. She wanted to kick herself at the thought. When Finnick stepped out to meet Annie, Marvel called out.

"Remember what I told you!" Finnick laughed and nodded at him. They waved goodbye.

"What was that about?" Annie asked.

"Oh, nothing. He just wanted me to do something for him," Finnick replied lightly. Annie frowned.

"You know it's not quite fair. You've met several of my friends, but I haven't met any of yours. And now you're doing favors for them," Annie said. Finnick looked at her.

"Do you want to meet my friends?" he asked gently, his eyes shining. She smiled at him.

"Of course I do. I need to see if you behave as ridiculously in front of them as you do me," Annie answered lightly. Finnick started laughing.

"Oh, I think it's them you have to worry about, or have you forgotten that you met my buddy Peeta while he was in a particularly intoxicated state?" Finnick quieted for a moment before continuing, "Although that is a night I'd rather forget." Annie swallowed. That was the night she said she wanted nothing to do with Finnick. She reached down and intertwined Finnick's hand with hers while they walked toward the pool.

"Well then, shall we make this one a night to remember?" Annie teased.

* * *

Convincing Annie that the only proper way to get into a pool was by a cannon ball into the deep end proved harder than he had anticipated.

"But it's cold," she protested.

"It's going to be cold no matter what. You might as well get it all over with rather than just little by little," Finnick prodded. She finally agreed, but only if they jumped in together.

"I'm not getting pushed in while you run away laughing," she warned. Finnick feigned hurt

"I would never!"

Finnick didn't miss the way Annie's eyes swept over his chest as he pulled his shirt off and he fought his smirk. Finnick never wanted to sound conceited or cocky, but he knew he was good looking. He'd had a few awkward years with too-long limbs and braces, but it all paid off, and nowadays he took very good care of himself. However he had to fight his own stare when Annie took off her dress. Annie's suit was modest but showed off her legs wonderfully. When she glanced back at him, he coughed.

"So, shall we?" he asked to try and cover his ogling. Annie did a poor job of hiding her own smirk and she grabbed his hand and led him over to the edge of the pool.

On the count of three they both jumped into the pool. The rush of cool water flew over his head and pushed into his ears. It was magnificent. He emerged and saw Annie smiling, her hair plastered to her forehead. She shivered but began to breaststroke to the opposite side of the pool. She then propelled off the end and began a backstroke seamlessly. Finnick just watched her while he pulled his way through the water.

"Yes, I must say this was a very good idea that you had Finnick," Annie purred. Her eyes were closed and she merely floated along her back. "I don't use the pools often enough. I really should take advantage of it." Finnick's throat was tight. He wanted to touch her. He'd gotten his wish when she held his hand earlier and he even got to know what her cheek felt like under his lips, but he wanted to hold her, to press his lips against hers.

She felt his stare and turned her head to him, causing her to fall out of her float. She smiled.

"What?" she asked. Finnick knew he had to do something besides apologizing for staring at her, so he said the first thing that came to mind.

"Marvel said to ask you to show me your 'koala' move. Whatever that is," Finnick said gently, unsure of the reaction he would get, but Marvel said that it was Annie's "signature pool move," whatever that meant. Annie's face turned a red he had never seen before.

"What? What? Why?" Annie was so flustered she couldn't get a whole sentence out.

"He just said it was something funny. I don't know. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…" Finnick trailed off, pissed off at himself for ruining a perfectly lovely moment.

"That bastard ," Annie muttered under her breath and then she began to swim towards Finnick.

"What are you doing?" Finnick asked, alarmed.

"I'm showing you what I refer to as 'koala-ing'. See, I am a koala and _you_ are a tree limb," Annie said. Finnick began to laugh until he felt Annie's arms go around his neck. Any laughter and words on his tongue died immediately when he felt her legs move around his waist. He understood now. He was a tree limb and Annie was a koala wrapped around him. He felt her face press into his neck. Her cheeks were so warm, probably from blushing. His left arm was trapped beneath her body from where she clung to his side. He wished he was holding her, but this was certainly no consolation prize. He turned his head to the left and with his right hand he lifted her chin up from where it was pressed into his shoulder. She was still blushing but he felt her arms wind tighter around him as she tilted her face and met his lips with hers.

Their lips moved together seamlessly. He snaked his arm out from under her body and pulled her closer to him. He sucked her lower lip between his. She maneuvered herself around to his front. One hand tangled in his hair as the other dragged down his firm chest. Finnick brought one hand down to hoist Annie up even higher so she wouldn't feel his growing arousal. Their mouths continued to slant against one another. His tongue slid into her mouth and was met with equal fervor. Finnick groaned when he felt Annie's nails dragging across his scalp. One of his hands held firmly to her bottom holding her up while one hand was tangled in her tresses. There wasn't an inch between them. It wasn't until they heard voices that they sprang apart. They did so just in time, when two guys rounded the corner and passed by the pool, sending them a couple of suspicious glances. Finnick could hardly make eye contact with Annie. He worried that he crossed a line and gone too far. But most importantly, he needed to calm down. His breathing began to even out before he chanced a look at Annie. She was looking right back at him, a smile spread across her face and a light blush present on her cheeks. She began to laugh and swam over to him. She stopped before any part of them touched, to Finnick's dismay but the words out of her mouth made him feel just as joyful as any touch could.

"I'm really glad you kissed me," she said with a grin. He leaned forward and pressed another kiss to her lips. They both pulled away smiling. They didn't take their eyes off of each other the rest of the swim.

It eventually came time for them to leave the fantasy world that they had created in the pool once their fingers started to prune and their eyes burned from the chlorine. They wrapped themselves in towels and sat for a few minutes, waiting to dry off a bit before putting their clothes back on. Annie suddenly hopped to her feet.

"Ohmygosh I have to grab your book for you!" she exclaimed and started off in the direction of her apartment.

"Wait!" Finnick called after her. She stopped and turned back around. "Why don't I just grab it when I change back into my clothes?" he asked. She frowned.

"Oh, well why don't you go change at Marvel's and I'll meet you there. My apartment isn't fit to be seen," she said flippantly. This bothered Finnick some, but he didn't want to say anything after they had such a wonderful breakthrough. She headed off again but not before saying one last thing. "But please don't tell Marvel I showed you the koala."

Finnick couldn't help the grin that broke across his face when remembering Annie's limbs wrapped around him, although he couldn't think about it for too long before starting to get hard again. He stood up and made his way to Marvel's. He thought about all the ways Annie had let him in. Her work, her friends, he had shared a meal with her, and she let him kiss her. He wondered when she would let him into her apartment.

He knew that he needed to bring Annie more into his world. Now, things between them were going so well and he felt confident that this was a real, tangible _thing _he knew that he wanted her to officially meet Peeta. And Thom.

And maybe one day, Mags.

* * *

**Thanks for Reading. Reviews are always appreciated! Feel free to find me on tumble at mereditheo dot tumblr dot com :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**I don't own THG and a big thanks to for-prim for being a wonderful and fast beta! Sorry for the wait, real life has been stressing me out as it is wont to do. Also, even though this story is rated T because I'm not planning on there being anything *graphic*, there are some more mature elements to this chapter.**

**Please- Read and Enjoy!**

* * *

Finnick had Annie pressed against the wall outside her apartment door. They had only come up for air once since the walk to her door had turned into an impromptu makeout session. They hadn't seen each other since the night swim that led to their first kiss, and Finnick had been worried about where they stood. But they went to a movie that evening and laughed their way through it with Annie's head on his shoulder and the entire drive home Finnick's right hand was linked with Annie's on her lap. As soon as they stepped out of the car his arm was around her waist and soon after his lips sought hers.

Her arms wrapped tighter around his neck to press him as close to her as he could get. His arms were wrapped around her waist and he dared to lower one of his hands to the curve of her bottom. She just pressed herself closer. He took this as a sign and firmly grabbed her ass. She squealed into his mouth and pulled away laughing. He leaned his forehead against hers. He licked his lips. He was extremely apprehensive about what he was about to ask. She was looking up at him through her lashes and he was positive that she could feel him with how close she was to him.

"Would it be presumptuous of me to ask to come inside?" he asked with his eyes closed. When he chanced a look at her he was shocked to find her blinking back at him as her mouth shifted downwards into a frown. He stepped back and she shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but no," Annie answered. Finnick swallowed the knot in his throat and croaked out.

"Sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…"

"No! It's just. People aren't allowed in my apartment. Wait, that sounds weird. I don't let people see my apartment," Annie said looking off towards her door, her forehead crinkling. Finnick was trying to wrap his head around this, he really was. But all he really felt was confusion.

"I'm not sure I understand. You don't let people in your apartment?" he tried to ask as gently as possible but Annie snapped her head up and her green eyes were cold.

"What do you not understand? _I don't let people see my apartment._ I don't think it's that difficult to comprehend," she snapped. Finnick recoiled at her tone. He had never heard Annie's voice so sharp before. He did what he always did and attempted to diffuse the situation with humor.

"You're not hiding a dead body in there are you?" he laughed. Annie's frown just deepened.

"It's none of your business what's in there, so I would appreciate it if you would just drop it," Annie said, her hard resolve clearly present. Finnick just took another step back and ran his fingers through his hair, which had already been mussed by Annie's enthusiastic fingers.

"I'm sorry. Really I am. I didn't mean to push," Finnick began but was cut off by Annie.

"It doesn't matter. Whatever. I'll see you later." And just like that, she disappeared through her apartment door.

For the second time in as many weeks, Finnick was left standing outside Annie's door confused by her actions, but this time he was confused in the worst way possible. He slowly walked back to his car wondering how their evening had done a 180 in a matter of seconds. He kicked himself for his stupid question. However on his drive home he became less angry at himself and felt his anger more directed towards Annie. Yes, he pulled a dick move and asked to come inside but she didn't have to shut down like that. And he couldn't tell if her reason was just an excuse to get him to leave or not. If it wasn't, what exactly did it mean? Surely she wasn't serious that she didn't let people in her apartment. That was ridiculous. As soon as he got home he pulled out his phone and pulled up Johanna's number. Maybe this was unfair going behind her back, but he was determined to find out. He typed out a quick message.

_Hey Johanna, it's Finnick. Can I ask you a question?_

And in less than a minute his phone buzzed.

_Hey stud, need help picking out an engagement ring already? _

Finnick rolled his eyes.

_Um no not quite. This might sound stupid but have you ever been in Annie's apartment?_

He felt so stupid asking. Johanna was one of Annie's best friends. Of course she's been in her apartment.

_Is that a joke? I helped her move in. Broke like 3 of my nails in the process. Yes I've been in her fucking apartment._

Okay, so maybe Finnick wasn't crazy.

_Have you been in since then?_

His phone was silent for a good five minutes before he finally heard the telltale buzz. He checked it and only saw one word waiting for him in the message.

_No._

* * *

Annie sat on her bed and stared at her floor. The floor that she could hardly see thanks to piles of things that she didn't even know how to begin sorting through. About once every two weeks she grabbed the piles of clothes and put them in her laundry basket. She'd usually miss a few items but she would just get them next time so she would always shrug it off. Marvel was the only person who had seen her apartment like this.

The worst part about what happened with Finnick was that she wanted to say yes. She wanted to say yes so badly. He looked so handsome and his mouth felt impossibly good on hers, but the second that she thought about the state of the inside of her apartment she knew she couldn't say yes. It was so stupid. How could she let something as stupid as a messy apartment keep her from what she wanted? Eventually she couldn't stare at the floor of her bedroom anymore, so she went into her living room/dining room/kitchen hybrid and found that it was in a similar if not worse state. She fought back the tears and grabbed her keys and walked outside, barefoot and clad only in her nightgown over to Marvel's. She had a spare key so she just slipped inside and settled on his couch and silently cried herself to sleep.

She was woken by Marvel gently stroking her arm. He sat on the edge of the couch and was looking at her with sympathetic eyes. She knew she must look horrible with puffy eyes and cracked lips but Marvel just smiled at her and helped her sit up. He handed her a steaming cup of tea that she gratefully accepted. He didn't say anything. He just let her sip her drink. She then went into his bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth. She laughed when Marvel handed her a pair of his gross flip-flops and a sweater to put on over her nightgown for the walk back to her apartment. She kissed him on the cheek and headed out. She spent the day doing laundry, but Annie was just disheartened at the clutter that remained after she picked her clothes up to toss into the laundry basket. It would never be presentable. She fought back tears and when she was done washing her clothes she text Finnick and asked him what time he got off work. He quickly responded and asked why but she didn't answer. When five o'clock rolled around she begged Marvel to drive her to Finnick's office. He warily agreed.

"You know, I really must love you if I'm taking you somewhere during rush hour. You know I don't like to drive between four and seven," he huffed, but she promised to buy him dinner the next day.

Marvel dropped her off at the parking garage next to Finnick's office. She walked in and found his car. She stood by his driver's side for fifteen minutes before she saw him approach. Her breath caught in her throat. He looked so handsome. She had no idea how he still looked so put together after a full day of work. His shirt was still had that freshly pressed look. His sleeves weren't even rolled up. His tie just finished the look off flawlessly. He was so ridiculously good looking. Annie remembered the feeling of his mouth moving against hers and how wonderful it was to feel the weight of his body pressing upon her. Her mouth went dry at the memory of their first kiss in the pool and how his hand had slid down to cup her ass. His hands were large and strong and right now they were holding his cell phone.

His head was down paying close attention to his phone, but she caught his tongue dart out between his lips to wet them and Annie had to fight the urge to run and jump into his arms. Not a second later than that thought occurred her phone began to ring. She fumbled with her purse looked and saw Finnick's name flash on the screen causing her laughter to ring through the air. Finnick looked up and to his utter shock saw Annie standing in front of his car. He took the phone away from his ear. Annie saw a ghost of a smile appear on his face before it morphed into a frown as he walked towards her.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" he asked quietly.

"I just needed to see you," Annie murmured. She looked up at his face and found it void of any emotion.

"Are we in a fight?" she whispered.

"I don't know, are we?" he responded. His eyes softened as she took a shuddering breath.

"I don't want to be. I'm sorry I overreacted the other night. It's just a thing. I don't know…" she trailed off as her eyes welled up. She just wanted Finnick to embrace her. She closed her eyes and felt a stray tear escape.

"I just don't understand," he began and she looked back up at him. "You could have told me or at least given me some kind of warning. I didn't want to upset you. I don't know, sometimes I just think you didn't want me to come inside."

"Would it help if I told you I did want you to come inside," Annie said with a small smile on her face. Finnick's lips upturned for a fraction of a second before returning to the straight line the held before. He looked away and sighed.

"I'm not gonna lie, it helps a little bit," he said. He looked back at her and the hint of a smile returned to his face. Annie wiped her eyes.

"How about we do this: why don't you take me back to your place?" Annie asked. She knew that they needed to learn to trust each other. He needed to trust that she wouldn't shut down and push him away again and she needed to trust that he was someone she could bring into her life completely. Finnick blinked.

"Are you sure?" he asked hesitantly and Annie pressed up to kiss him, her hands on his shoulders holding onto the crisp material of his pressed shirt. She loved feeling the muscles flex underneath her fingers as he wrapped his arms around her to pull her closer. Much to Finnick's chagrin Annie pulled away and walked around to the passenger side of his car. When she didn't hear the telltale click of the doors unlocking she looked to Finnick who has remained in the same spot, a smirk etched onto his face.

"I don't know. I mean I'll let _anyone_ in my apartment, but Peeta? He's a different story. I should probably call him and get the okay," he said smarmily with his head moving about ridiculously. Annie just cocked her head to the side.

"Haha, very funny. Now unlock the car. I'm very intrigued about seeing your place," she said. She looked directly into Finnick's eyes and smiled fully as they widened.

"I'm especially interested in getting a tour of your bedroom."

The door was unlocked in a second and Annie couldn't help but laugh.

"Don't tease me," Finnick said. Annie looked at him a moment before opening the door.

"Who said I'm teasing," she said before she disappeared into the car.

* * *

"Can I be honest with you?" Annie asked as she entered the kitchen where Finnick was standing. He had watched Annie slowly walk around the space: the small living area that greeted them as they entered the apartment, the kitchen, even the bathroom that was just off the living area. She seemed to be inspecting things. She had stood in front of the small bookcase and studied the titles there, and now she had just studied the content of his refrigerator, which thanks to Peeta, was very well stocked.

"Yeah," Finnick said. He was dying to know what was going through her mind right now.

"It's smaller than I expected," she said quietly. She ducked her head down as though she expected him to be mad at her for stating the truth.

"Oh, yeah, it's pretty small. But there's no need for us to live anywhere bigger. It has everything we need. Plus the kitchen," he gestured around them, "is pretty big compared to the rest of the apartment." She nodded in agreement.

"I guess I just always imagined you in some huge, cold, bachelor pad. Not this. It's very homey," she said as she ran her hand along the kitchen counter.

"Yeah, we've been here almost three years. We've made it our own. When we first moved in, a couple of college girls had just moved out. The walls were bubblegum pink and they had left these horrible flowery curtains and a weird sparkly shower curtain." Finnick laughed at the memory. Annie laughed along with him trying to imagine Finnick existing in such a place.

"Well I like the color of the walls now." Annie replied, a large smile on her face.

The apartment was small and quite old. It had hardwood floors except for the kitchen that had a black and white checkered tile. Finnick and Peeta took good care of their place, but it was obvious that it was an older model, particularly in the bathroom. The fixtures were a little rusty and the bathtub and sink seemed to have layers of paint and soapscum that had made its home in their bathroom. They cleaned it regularly, but some things couldn't be covered up. It served its purpose though.

The two were interrupted by Peeta opening the door to the apartment and shouting his usual greeting.

"Honey I'm home!" Annie fought to stifle her laugh as she saw Peeta walk into the apartment and glance around. His eyes landed on Annie through the doorway to the kitchen and Finnick leaned over and his head appeared through the doorway. He grinned at Peeta

"Hey bud, why don't you come on in and meet Annie."

Peeta walked into the kitchen and immediately stuck his hand out to Annie who in turn shook his as she met his kind eyes with her own.

"Annie, it's nice to finally meet you. I'm Peeta Mellark," he said gently and Annie reciprocated with her own name. Peeta turned his sheepish smile upon Finnick.

"I wish I could stay. I really do, but I promised Katniss I'd show her how to make my red velvet cupcakes."

"Oh yeah, you own a bakery! The one with the stand at the farmer's market, yes?" Annie asked excitedly. Peeta nodded.

"Well, it was my father's but he's about to retire so I'm in the process of taking it over," Peeta explained.

"I love your cinnamon raisin bread so much," Annie gushed. Peeta smiled back at her.

"I'm glad to hear it. Tell Finnick here to let me know next time you're here and I'll bring one home for you. Okay?" he asked. Annie just smiled and nodded her thanks. Finnick watched them talk and was so happy to see the two of them getting along. Soon enough Peeta was out the door and yelling back at Finnick to make sure he doesn't burn down the apartment. Annie turned back to Finnick.

"So what should we have for dinner?" Annie found herself asking, knowingly inviting herself to stay. Finnick grinned.

"I've got a lasagna in the freezer if that sounds good. Courtesy of Stouffer's," he said. Annie giggled and walked over to the freezer and pulled the package out. Finnick watched as she mouthed the words of the directions. She was soon preheating the oven and removing the dish from its box. Finnick brushed his hands on his pants and began to loosen his tie.

"Looks like our work here is done," he said triumphantly. Annie shot him an incredulous look and placed the pan in the oven, setting the timer.

They spent the evening discussing _The Bell Jar_ which Finnick is in the process of reading, each eating a piece of the lasagna at the small dining table and then when Finnick put the dishes in the sink and was about to ask if she wanted to watch television she surprised him by grabbing his collar and pulling him down into a heated kiss. There was still the familiar tang of marinara sauce still present on her lips and when she pulled away he watched her lips as they formed the best words he'd heard all night.

"I still haven't gotten a tour of your bedroom."

They stumbled into the room kissing. Annie knew this wasn't much of a tour but she was perfectly all right with that. She wanted a tour of his body. She sat down on his bed and pulled him down next to her. She wanted more. She moved to where she was sitting on his lap. She could feel his straining arousal and one of his hands went straight to her ass and she groaned as she felt him grab it. Her hands moved from his face, which was covered in a light stubble, into his thick hair. The kiss was intense and desperate. She grabbed one of his hands and moved it to her chest. Finnick pulled away at this and stared down at his hand that was full of her fabric covered breast. He ran his thumb over the mound and his breath caught as he felt the hardened nipple underneath the layers of fabric.

"You can take my shirt off if you want," Annie whispered as she began to unbutton Finnick's shirt. As soon as she pushed the fabric from his shoulders he was reaching for the hem of her shirt and helping her out of it. They spent much time exploring each other's torsos but when Annie reached for the belt buckle on Finnick's pants he grabbed her hand.

"Not now. Not yet." he said quickly

"Why not?" Annie asked quietly, worried she had done something wrong.

"I haven't even seen your apartment," he said with a sad smile on his face. Annie looked him in the eye and with her sheer determination she said the words that made Finnick's heart sing.

"You will."

"We'll continue this then," Finnick replied. They moved up his bed and Finnick pulled Annie to him as they situated themselves underneath his soft sheets. Suddenly everything was quiet and they were the only two people in the world Finnick began playing Annie's hair as he talked.

"Can I ask you a question?" he murmured.

"Yes," Annie answered in a hushed tone.

"Has anyone seen your apartment?"

Annie was quiet for a moment as she thought.

"The only one that's seen it the way it is now is Marvel."

"Why has Marvel seen you apartment?" Finnick asked playfully with a twinge of jealousy present in his voice. Annie swatted his arm as she rolled over to face him.

"Only boyfriends of mine are allowed inside," she teased. His eyebrows shot up. Annie realized what that sounded like and immediately tried to fix what she believed to be an immensely awkward situation, but soon her lips were captured by Finnick's. He gently lapped at her mouth and she sighed into his cheek. He pulled away.

"And what exactly does a guy have to do to be your boyfriend?" he asked shyly but with hope gleaming in his eyes.

"Just keep doing what you're doing," Annie murmured before closing the gap between them once more.

* * *

**Thanks for Reading! Reviews are always appreciated. Come play with me on tumblr! Username is mereditheo**


	10. Chapter 10

**So sorry for the long wait. Thanks for being patient. Also thnaks to for-prim for being an awesome beta and an even better friend.**

* * *

"You need to calm down."

Marvel's voice echoed around Annie's apartment but he sounded underwater to her. Nothing was right. Had her carpet always been this dingy looking? Her kitchen seemed even smaller than usual, and her furniture was dusty now that it wasn't covered in papers, magazines, and books. Everything looked wrong. Show was she supposed invite people over? Finnick over? Theentire day had been grueling. Annie learned she had a difficult time parting with items that were strewn across her apartment. Much more difficult than she had anticipated. It came to a head when Marvel began throwing out old magazines.

"But I read an article in that one that I really liked," she said as Marvel deposited each magazine in the recycling bin outside her apartment complex. Marvel sighed angrily. Annie looked up at him. He looked _pissed_.

"I'm sorry!" Annie exclaimed. She hated when people were mad at her.

"Do you want my help or not?" Marvel asked. He shook his head as he shoved the rest into the dumpster.

"I do."

"Then you have to listen to me. We've made great progress. We just need to organize your closet and vacuum and then we should be done. Then you can invite Finnick over so you can ravish him the way he deserves."

"Marvel!" Annie swatted at him, but he ducked out of the way and started walking back to her apartment.

"You can tell me as many stories as you like but I know why you're doing this. I have to commend you on your self-control because I would have hit that in a second," Marvel said as they walked back into her apartment. They walked the short distance to her bedroom and he opened her closet doors and immediately started hanging up all the clothes on the floor and putting up the shoes that they had collected from the living room.

"Trust me, I tried," Annie said as she reclined on her bed watching Marvel work. He stopped and turned around.

"What?! Details!" Marvel dropped the pair of flats he was working into the shoe holder and hopped on Annie's bed. Annie sighed and sat up. They faced each other and sat Indian style. This was a familiar situation. She remembered sitting like this on the bed in Marvel's dorm room when he told her he was gay. She cried that night.

"I was over at his place and he was being so sweet and so perfect"

"And so hot," Marvel cut in. Annie stuck her tongue out at him while he laughed.

"Yes, and he was so hot. I don't even understand his level of hotness at times. It's like, how does someone like him exist? How does he not have a girlfriend?"

"I think he does," Marvel teased. He nudged Annie's big toe with his own. Annie ducked her head and tried to fight back a smile.

"I mean, we've never talked about it," Annie mumbled. The front pieces of her hair that had long slid out of her ponytail fell forwards, covering parts of her face.

"Annie," Marvel's voice was serious. Annie looked up into his eyes. They were a rich brown with yellow flecks, and they were smiling while he said his next words.

"He is crazy about you." Annie rolled her eyes at him while fighting a smile. "Really. Seeing y'all all smiley together the other night was almost sickening. But then I got to see him wearing my swim trunks and I got over it," Marvel continued, ignoring the face Annie made.

"But you're the one who's gotten to see him shirtless countless times. Tell me, is it magical?" Marvel leaned his elbows on his knees and propped his head up on his hands.

"Yes," Annie breathed out before they both fell into a fit of laughter.

After Marvel made her describe Finnick's shirtless figure, even going so far as to pull up photos of Zac Efron and Mario Lopez as reference on his phone, Annie kicked him out.

"But we're not totally done with your room yet. And I know if you try it yourself you're just gonna end up sobbing on the floor clutching one of your purses." Marvel said, his brow wrinkling.

"That was _one time_," Annie countered.

"Two times, but okay. Where are you heading?" Marvel asked. Annie smiled coyly before replying.

"Finnick and I are having a sleepover."

* * *

It truly was a sleepover in the most innocent sense of the word. Annie packed up one of her Vera Bradley duffels with her nightgown, clothes for work the next day and a set of toiletries before driving over to Finnick and Peeta's place. She didn't know if Peeta was going to be there or not. This question was quickly answered when she knocked on the door and it opened at once, an amazing smell flooding her nostrils. It almost distracted her from the hug that Finnick had enveloped her in. But she soon wrapped her arms around his neck and clung tightly to him for a few seconds before pulling back so Finnick could lean down and kiss her. Annie gripped his shirt with one hand. She didn't want him to pull away. He just felt so good and warm. Eventually they had to separate.

"Peeta's cooking?" Annie asked.

"Is it that obvious?" Finnick responded sheepishly.

"The aroma has a certain home-cooked quality to it," she answered laughing. Peeta stuck his head through the kitchen doorway. Finnick quickly deposited Annie's bag in his bedroom

"Hey Annie. Dinner's almost ready. It's pasta with shrimp and vegetables, but I added a lot of Cajun seasoning to it. Is that all right?"

"Sounds delicious," Annie replied. She stepped forward to quickly hug Peeta.

"Oh, I brought you home a loaf of that bread you like," Peeta said. Annie put her hand over her heart. She was touched.

"Thank you."

"Don't thank me, thank your boyfriend. He's the one who…" Peeta's face dropped and Annie could tell he was looking at something behind her. Annie quickly turned around to see Finnick making a face and shaking his head. He saw her and quickly dropped the act.

"Peeta, why don't you just finish up dinner," Finnick said in one breath. Annie narrowed her eyes at Finnick but his smile just widened. However, she could see that his eyes were telling a different story. They were flitting all around the room. Finnick led her to the couch while Peeta returned to the kitchen.

"Um, what's with the mini freak-out?" Annie asked once they had settled.

"What are you talking about?" Finnick said, playing dumb.

"I'm talking about that weird little moment we all had back there," Annie said. She grabbed Finnick's hand and laced it with hers. He looked down at it and then back at her. He ducked his head down to kiss her quickly. Annie looked at him in confusion.

"That is a very good way to distract me but its not gonna work this time!" Annie said, determination present in her voice. Finnick sighed and scrubbed the hand that wasn't in hers across his face.

"I didn't know Peeta was going to call me your boyfriend," Finnick said, his eyes downcast.

"Okay…"Annie trailed off, hoping Finnick would continue.

"And we haven't, you know, established anything so I didn't want you to think I was telling him that I was your boyfriend or that you were my girlfriend…"

"Am I your girlfriend?" Annie asked quickly, hoping that her brave face would last longer than the question.

"I want you to be," Finnick breathed out. He looked back at her. "And I know we kind of had that talk the other night but it wasn't decided or anything. So, Annie," Finnick grabbed her other hand and turned his body completely towards hers and she did the same. "Will you be my girlfriend?" he asked, his eyes never leaving hers. Annie whispered yes before kissing him. She forced herself atop of him and they lay stretched out on the couch kissing before they heard the clearing of a throat.

"Dinner's ready," Peeta announced to the pair of embarrassed lovebirds. Annie stood up first and straightened her clothes. She shot Finnick a look that was only met with his laughter.

Dinner was delicious, as she expected. It was spicy and full of flavor, the bread buttery and soft, and the white wine was cool on their tongues. Peeta was all smiles, and through him she got to know more about Finnick. She learned about Finnick's family, his older siblings who were twins and ten years older than him, and what high school he went to.

"Finnick went to a super elite private school," Peeta said.

"Like HP isn't the snootiest public school around," countered Finnick. Having lived in the city for four years Annie knew exactly what school they were talking about and laughed along with them. Eventually they turned their questions on her.

"I'm an only child," Annie informed them. Finnick wasn't surprised. Annie appeared to be someone who had spent many moments alone, a girl who knew how to live inside her own head. He could also see it in the people she spent time around. Boisterous and loud yet tender, Marvel and Johanna were both people who coddled Annie and cared for her as parents or much older siblings, such as his own would. She could be independent, but with them she wouldn't always have to be.

"So are you a princess?" Finnick teased.

"Yes, I am. Daddy AND Mommy's little princess. I think I broke their hearts when I moved away," Annie said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"My parents were so glad I chose to not move back in with them when I came back after school."

"They were just worried since they knew Mags couldn't take care of you anymore! So they pawned you off on me," Peeta laughed.

"I miss Mags," Finnick mused. He lifted his wine glass and took a sip, his face thoughtful.

"That's your nanny right?"

"Yes," Finnick replied, a large smile decorating his face.

"When did she stop being your _nanny_?" Annie inquired, leaning forward and finishing the remains of her glass of wine.

"She's never really stopped. She stopped coming around every day when I hit high school, but she went to every school event and she visited a lot. Even now I still see her every couple of weeks. Usually we just have a snack and talk but on her birthday I took her out you know. One day I'll take you, Annie," Finnick said, directing his smile at her. Annie almost choked on her pasta. Was he talking about meeting his nanny? Who she could probably successfully argue was the most important person in his life. Was she ready for that kind of responsibility? Oh God, if Mags didn't like her, she was done for. No way could Finnick ever be with someone his nanny didn't like.

"Okay," was Annie's only answer. They finished their dinner off with ice cream sandwiches that Peeta made using his bakery's cookies and homemade ice cream. It was one of the best meals Annie had ever eaten. Peeta took off shortly after, saying that he was spending the night at Katniss's.

"He stays here maybe once a week. I tell him it's okay if she stays here but he says it works out better because she doesn't have a roommate," Finnick said, winking at her.

_Oh_

Annie could feel the blush coming on. She wanted to tell Finnick that it would happen soon. That she wanted it so badly. She thought about it at the most inopportune times. At work when it's slow she'll remember his lips on her chest and his hands roaming her back and reaching down to cup her ass and then she starts to imagine what it would be like if they went further than just wandering hands. But then she thinks that Finnick's hands haven't wandered enough, nor have hers. But she knew they would.

They sat close together on the couch and watched the remains of some television show that they aren't really paying attention to because they're too busy paying attention to each other. Eventually Annie began to ready herself for bed. She took a fast shower only using a bit of soap and face wash, and then she slid her nightgown over her head. It was soft cotton and a pale pink. She combed her hair before she brushed her teeth, ridding her mouth of the spicy taste that lingered from dinner. When she walked out of the bathroom barefoot she felt Finnick's eyes on her. When she walked over to the couch and before she could sit, he pulled her down on his lap and immediately put his lips to her neck.

"You smell so good," Finnick murmured against her skin.

"I used your soap," Annie giggled, his breath tickling her. When his hand slid higher on her thigh, she welcomed it. She placed her hand over his and guided it to where she really wanted it. She sought his lips with hers. She melded into him and with Finnick's hands on her she eventually became boneless, completely supported by him. He kissed her lips, her forehead, her cheeks before he forced himself out of their embrace.

"Well I definitely need a shower now," Finnick joked. Annie was sad to leave his warmth but she figured they would be close again when they were in his bed.

* * *

Annie soon learned that Finnick's warmth wasn't always a good thing. When she woke up covered in sweat at three in the morning, she rolled onto her side and could feel the heat emanating from Finnick's body. She turned onto her back and stared at the ceiling for a minute, or rather, the ceiling fan. She crept out of bed and searched for the switch on the wall. She came up empty in her search however. When she ran a hand through her hair and felt the sweaty locks she knew she had no choice but to wake Finnick up. She couldn't sleep like this anymore. She crept over the Finnick's side and slid her hand over his bicep that was lightly coated with sweat and lightly squeezed.

"Finnick," she whispered. No response. She squeezed his arm a little tighter.

"Finnick," she whispered urgently. Finnick jolted awake. He looked at her with confused eyes.

"Annie, what's going on?"

"Finnick, you're a thousand degrees," Annie said.

"I mean, if you wanted to say I'm hot you could have done it in the morning. Not that I mind it necessarily," Finnick said as cheekily as he could muster for three AM. Annie shook her head, trying to not giggle at the silly man lying there.

"I mean, the room is like a thousand degrees, and I'm sorry but you seem to be the source." Finnick frowned.

"What do you mean?" Finnick asked before his muscles betrayed him with a yawn.

"I mean heat is coming off of you in waves and I can't find the switch for the fan so I needed your help." Finnick got out of his bed and only stumbled slightly as he took a few steps until he was directly under the fan. He reached up and gently tugged the pull-string on the fan twice. It slowly came to life and Annie breathed a sigh of relief. They climbed back in bed and Annie lay by Finnick's side with the sheets pushed down by her feet and let the air whipping around the room cool her body.

"Feel better?" Annie felt Finnick's whisper hit her hear. She nodded and turned her head to face him.

"Much."

"Sorry I'm so hot," Finnick said. Annie pushed him off the bed.

* * *

The next morning, Finnick's alarm went off, his hand silencing it almost immediately. He opened his eyes to see Annie lying in his bed with his sheet wrapped around her. Finnick felt his heart leap out of his chest at the sight. She looked so pretty and delicate. So fragile. But he knew that she held enough power to break him if she wanted. Annie blinked herself awake and seeing Finnick, she echoed his smile back at him. They got up and Finnick put on a pot of coffee, while Annie dressed for the day. When she walked into the kitchen in a shift dress and a cardigan, her hair woven into a fishtail braid Finnick handed her a cup and kissed her on the cheek. She leaned against the counter and after a sip of coffee, she asked him a question so casually it was as if it were any other question.

"Would you like to stay over at my place one night this weekend?"

* * *

**Thanks for reading! Reviews are always appreciated :)**


End file.
